Namesake
by XscouselondonerX
Summary: "Can I help you?" Breha asked. "That's my fighter you're working on," He announced. The corner of her mouth drew up into a smirk. "Aren't you lucky," She replied. Poe's eyebrows rose at her reply. Set before TFA - Poe/OC
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars.

 **Chapter 1**

Ben Solo entered Hanger 2 and smirked as he caught sight of a familiar head of hair peeking out from over the top of the wing of and X-Wing T-70. A messy ball of black curves gave away the whereabouts of his sister, probably elbow deep in the mechanics of the fighter knowing her. Quietly, the younger Solo snuck around the X-wing, his sister not noticing. She was too concentrated on her work, Ben could tell by the slight furrowing of her brow. Holding his hand out in front of him, Ben focussed on levitating the wrench to his sister's right up in to the air.

Breha smirked, finally spotting the loose connection and went to grab the wrench, only her hand didn't find the wrench merely the cold metal of the top wing of the X-wing. Dark eyebrows drew together in confusion as she looked for the wrench, frowning as she spotted the item hovering 2 feet above her head. Narrowed eyes immediately found her brother.

"Ben," Breha frowned holding out her hand for the wrench.

"Do I have your attention?" He asked. Breha rolled her eyes, he still hadn't forgotten the time he'd spoken to her for three full minutes before realising that she was too engrossed with the insides of a droid to register any of what he was saying. She nodded. Ben lowered his hand and the wrench fell into Breha's hand. She jumped down from the ladder she'd been using to access the panel into the wing and walked over to her brother. Being only 16 she still had a head of height on him, but that gap was quickly closing.

"What's up?" Breha asked, wiping her hand on a dirty rag to try and rid them of some of the grease.

"Wanted to see if you'd seen the newbies mum was greeting?" Ben asked. Breha paused in wiping her hands, eyes narrowing.

"Pilots?" She asked.

"Not sure, but three of them arrived in three X wings, wearing jump suits." Ben replied. Breha inhaled slowly and exhaled with the same control.

"Any sign of more mechanics?" She asked. Ben shook his head. Breha swore under her breath and threw the wrench she'd been holding with enough force and accuracy to knock her case of tools over, tools and small replacement parts scattering across the floor.

"Bree?" Ben raised a concerned brow. Breha's jaw was locked, teeth clenched. Sparing him a glance, she shook her head lightly.

"Thanks for telling me Ben." She placed a hand on his head of thick black curls before turning and briskly walking out of the hanger. Ben frowned at the retreating back of his sister.

Breha entered the central command centre and spotted the General almost immediately, she was such a presence in the room it was hard to miss her. The mechanic's hands then tightened around the data pads of jobs she'd been handed on her way to the command centre at the sight of three pilots, still in there Republic jump suits. Her eyes scanned the room – not a mechanic in sight. Shaking her head, Breha approached the General.

Leia spotted her daughter first over the shoulders of her new Commander, Poe Dameron. Her face broke into a smile despite her daughter's obvious ire. The three pilots followed the Generals gaze to see a young, scruffy looking girl ignore them and keep her eyes trained on the General. Leia beat her daughter to speaking first.

"Breha, perfect timing to meet our three new pilots, Commander Poe Dameron and Captains Karé Kun and Iolo Arana," Leia smiled. "Breha here is one of our best mechanics," Breha turned to look at the three pilots.

"Hi, welcome to the resistance," She said and before they could reply she quickly turned her attention back to Leia, "A word please?" Breha raised a brow. Leia eyed her daughter before nodding. "Tomas," Leia called, a young ginger haired boy appeared at her side, Breha put him at about the same age as her, 17-18. "Would you kindly show the three pilots here around?"

"Yes General," Tomas nodded.

"I'll join the three of you later," The General assured the three pilots. The three saluted to her before following Tomas's hand gestures and moved away from the General. Poe Dameron lingered a little longer than the other two, his interest peaked but the mechanic didn't even hint at talking any more whilst he was stood there. The corner of his mouth quirked upwards as he finally turned and left the two women. Poe paused again in the doorway and looked back at the pair. The mechanic was certainly talking now, her bare arms gesticulating passionately. His eyes looked her up and down, scruffy boots, dirty green overalls tied at her waist and an equally dirty grey vest top – she didn't look important. Yet there she was ranting to the General of the resistance.

"Poe, get your head out of the stars," Karé called as she realised he'd fallen behind.

"I'm coming," Poe grinned boyishly at his comrade as he caught up with them.

Breha had waited until the curious commander had left her and her mother before she began. She even tried to keep her voice low.

"More pilots, and yet again no new mechanics?" Breha shakes her head in disbelief, daring her mother to prove her wrong. Leia's face is nothing but apologetic as she looks to the face of her daughter. It wasn't hard to see the darkening circles underneath Breha's eyes – under the eyes of any mechanic on the base for that matter.

"I didn't go with the intention of recruiting anyone Breha," Leia tried to explain.

"Your intentions don't matter now, the issue is that there are three new pilots and their X-wings." Bree snapped before inhaling and exhaling slowly. Her right hand, running over her temple and back, sweeping away a few loose curls from her face. Leia watched as her daughters shoulder relaxed and the tension that has been holding them rigid left. "We're spread too thin," Bree sighed, "We don't have enough mechanics."

"Breha, I'm sorry." Leia tried to reach for her daughter but the younger woman easily side stepped her and disguised the action as her picking up the three data pads for the new X-wings.

"When are the newbies going up?" Breha asked. Leia didn't respond causing Breha to look up at her mother's face.

"As soon as possible," Leia replied. Breha barked a bitter laugh as she added the three data pads to the three she had in her arms. "Breha-"

"Unless it's vital I've got work to," Breha apologised, Leia sighed before nodding sadly, dismissing Breha. She watched as her daughter turned and left the command centre as quickly as she'd entered it. Breha flicked through the data pads as she walked, the three new ships would be lengthy jobs but flicking through the other three they seemed simple enough. She looked up as she entered a small side room, enough space for a couple of couches, a fridge, sink and kettle. Sprawled out over the furniture she found three fellow mechanics.

"Oh no, she has data pads." Mareep tried to joke, but it was hard to joke about the work load anymore. Bree sent the man an apologetic gaze, Mareep was only a couple of years older than her and yet this work load had him looking a decade older.

"How bad?" Iivan, the oldest among them asked as he leant against the counter, steaming mug of coffee in his hand.

"Good news, these three seem to be simple enough droid repairs," She sifted the bottom three data pads out and put them on the table. Lara picked up one and scanned over it.

"I've got a few other medical equipment repairs today so I'll take this med-droid," She said. Breha smiled thankfully at the petite blonde woman.

"Thanks Lara," Bree nodded. "Bad news, I've got three new 70s here that need full diagnostics and matching to flight data."

"You're kidding?" Jak deadpanned.

"Unfortunately no," Breha sighed. "They're top priority,"

"Of course they are," Mareep rolled his eyes.

"I can take one," Iivan announced, "Everything else I have can be pushed."

"Thanks," Breha nodded as she handed him the top pad.

"Pass one this way," Jak sighed as she raised a hand. Breha thanked him as she passed the pad his way.

"I'll take these two," Breha took one of the droid repairs and kept the final X-wing for herself.

"So this is mine," Mareep said as he picked up the last droid repair. "Iivan got anything you were going to push you want to send my way?" He asked.

"Well since you asked." Iivan smiled slyly as he handed Mareep a data pad.

"Sanitation!" Mareep exclaimed causing the rest of the room to laugh, "Iivan, really? I was being kind!" Breha shook her head at their antics.

"Thanks for this guys," Breha smiled before turning and making her way out of the room.

She entered hanger 2 and was surprised to see Ben still there. His head was down, staring at the floor, letting his growing curls fall forward as he sat on a crate near the X-wing she'd been working on. He looked up as she neared him, either hearing her or sensing her. Bree smiled softly at the amount of concern in his large brown eyes.

"I'm okay Ben, I promise." She sat down next to him. He looked down at his hands. "You've been waiting here for me?" She asked. Ben nodded, still looking and his hands. Breha's heart swelled, "You're a good brother Ben," She smiled softly at him, he looked up at her this time, his own heart swelling at her words. "But honestly, I'm fine." Ben studied his sister's face, her light brown eyes were focussed and alert but that was all that remained of the carefree teen she used to be. Her cheeks were beginning to hollow out, probably due to her not eating properly. And those dark circles under her eyes, they just got darker and more pronounced every time Ben saw her.

"You don't look it," he raised a brow at her. A short laugh escaped Breha's mouth before she could stop it. Ben relaxed as he saw all of her tired features lift for a moment as she laughed.

"Wow, thank you so much." Her voice was dripping with sarcasm, but the corner of her lips tugged upwards in amusement. Ben grinned at her.

"Do you think you'll be able to make dinner with mum and me later?" He asked. Bree sighed, running a hand over her forehead to pull her curls from her face.

"I do always try to be there Ben," She began as she looked at the floor. Her eyes then met Ben's, "But I won't lie to you, the chances of me being there tonight are pretty slim."

"I'll see you around then," Ben smiled sadly before getting up and leaving.

"Bye Ben," Bree mirrored his sad smile as he left. With a sigh she turned back to her work load, adding her two newly acquired data pads to the stack of 7 she already had.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Poe Dameron hadn't been satisfied with the "tour" Tomas had taken him and his fellow pilots on. So that was why he found himself wandering the resistance base past midnight that evening. He found the base was a lot calmer at night, nobody was bustling around and emergency lighting lit most corridors opposed to the main lights. The few people he did encounter were also out of uniform, himself included. The flight jump suit had been swapped for his dark green trousers, beige top and familiar brown leather jacket.

The commander rounded a corner and smirked as he spotted Hanger doors. On the tour earlier the group had barely stepped foot into the hanger, let alone get a chance to view the set up here. He noticed that light, brighter than that of the emergency lighting was shining from the door and his curiosity was roused. Rounding the corner he paused as he spotted a single spot light on over one of the X-wing 70s – his new fighter if he wasn't mistaken. He paused in the doorway eyeing the back of the woman near his fighter, she was leant over slightly consulting a computer screen, but Poe recognised the haphazard pile of curls, even if the bun had fallen to one side slightly. She stood up, picking a tool from the side and approached his fighter, his eyes narrowed as spotted a barely touched portion of food on the side, his gut told him that was supposed to have been her dinner. He could see her lips moving, but she was speaking too quietly for him to hear her. She moved forward a little more and he caught sight of a royal purple and black R2 unit.

"I thought everyone was asleep," Poe spoke, loud enough for her to hear but not shouting. Her head whipped up at the sudden noise, honey coloured eyes wide. The little R2 unit also beeping in surprise. Bree swallowed her surprise down as the casually dressed pilot sauntered towards her.

"So did I," She replied, before looking back to her work. Oddly, Bree found it hard to focus her mind entirely back on the circuits in front of her. The periphery of her vision made it a priority to tract the dark haired pilot as he stalked around the front of the T-70. "Can I help you?" Breha asked.

"That's my fighter you're working on," He announced. The corner of her mouth drew up into a smirk.

"Aren't you lucky," She replied. Poe's eyebrows rose at her reply.

"Look," His hands rested on his hips, "I appreciate you tending to my fighter, but it's a waste of both of our times resetting everything to the manufacture's specs." He reasoned. Breha paused in her work and ran her tongue over her top teeth in amusement.

"Ahhh, so you plan on personalising?" She asked.

"Yes," He answered simply, "I'm the one flying it after all," Breha smirked as she turned from the T-70 and looked at Poe – truly looked at him this time. He was younger than her mind had assumed at first glance, early 20s at best, so she was immediately impressed with the title of Commander he held. However, he still looked every bit a devil may care young pilot, until she reached his eyes. Dark pools of brown weren't joking, not right now. They were focussed. Breha smiled, much to Poe's confusion, as she wiped her hands on the thighs of her overalls and walked over to him.

"You flew 85s before you came here didn't you?" She asked seemingly randomly from Poe's perspective. Stunned, he managed to nod in response. "You can tell," She motioned her head towards the computer on the side. Breha led the way to the computer, Poe curiously peering over her shoulder as he stood half a head taller than her.

"Flight data?" he asked.

"From all your flights in this fighter so far – so one." She nodded. "You can see here," She pointed to some earlier recorded data, 0 – 10 seconds of the flight, "that you were trying to fly this T-70 like it was an 85."

"I wasn't-"

"You were." She told him bluntly, Poe raised his brow but couldn't fight the amused half grin pulling at his lips. "But you adapted quickly, the quickest I've seen actually," She admitted off hand. Poe's brow lowered as he took the half compliment from the mechanic. Breha turned to face Poe, crossing her arms over her chest. "And we don't reset to factory here." She added. "We set fighter to pilot based on flight data and pilot _suggestions_." Her stress on the final word caught Poe's attention. He knew how pilots could be, those 'suggestions' were almost always complaints or demands.

"I can see why the General likes you," Poe's mouth quirked upwards at the corner. The laugh from Breha's mouth caught even her by surprise. Shaking her head in amusement she offered her hand to the pilot.

"Bree," She introduced. Poe took the calloused hand into his warmer, larger, but equally as calloused one.

"Poe," He smiled boyishly down at her. Bree blinked in surprise at the rogue grin he sent her way – that smile was going to cause a lot of trouble around the base. Bree cleared her throat as she let go of his hand, preoccupying herself by turning back to the fighter. "Do you need a hand?" He asked.

"No," Bree's reply was as sudden as the reply of the R2 unit that sat to the side. The droid had disagreed with her answer and had replied 'yes'. She shot the droid a glare before tentatively looking at Poe. His lips were pulled into an amused smirk, brows raised as he motioned towards the droid.

"You speak binary?" Bree asked. Poe tried to contain his smirk by biting his bottom lip lightly as he nods.

"Traitor," Bree spoke slowly to the R2 unit as she passed it by on her way back to Poe's side, the droid merely beeped a sassy retort. "I guess you could have a look at your weapons systems." She suggested, "Hard to do much with it since you haven't fired a shot in this fighter yet."

"Sorry for having a smooth journey to D'Qar," Poe replied sarcastically. "I can try and run into pirates or the first order next time if you'd prefer?" Bree narrowed her eyes. Picking up a small case of tool she pushed them into his chest with more force than necessary.

"Overalls are in the top draw," She motioned with her head towards a tall cabinet that stood against the wall. Before Poe had a chance to reply she'd turned around and gotten straight back to work on the T-70. Poe returned to the fighter with his own dark green overalls tied at his waist, leather jacket now resting on the stool leaving him in a beige shirt. Bree was now sat up on the T-70 straddling the rise of the ship just behind the cock-pit in order to access a panel. She didn't even acknowledge him as he climbed the access ladder to the cock-pit. The silence worked for about 10 minutes before Poe felt the need to break it.

"So Bree," He began, her name being drawn out on his tongue. Breha glanced up from her work, but Poe wasn't looking at her, he was still focussed on his work in the cockpit. "How long have you been here?" He asked.

"All my life," She replied, Poe's head rose at her response and he looked at her again trying to guess her age. "And where do you originate from?" She asked him before he could push her further.

"Yavin 4 originally, but I was based in the Mirrin sector for the last few years," He replied absentmindedly, "How old are you?" The pair had paused in their work now.

"18," Bree replied. She could see Poe's mind working, doing the maths and figuring that she was born around the same time that the resistance set up its base on D'Qar. "First human to be born on D'Qar," She added.

"What did you say your last name was?" Poe asked, eyes glinting with curiosity. His work was completely abandoned now. The young pilot had shifted on the ladder so that his elbows rested on the back of the cockpit and he could better look at Bree.

"I didn't," Bree replied simply as she looked down at the intrigued pilot.

"You're the daughter of someone important aren't you?" He asked. Bree didn't reply but Poe could tell by the flash in her honey eyes that he was correct. The R2 unit broke the silence, beeping in binary _'General Organa'._ Bree watched as the words didn't register immediately with Poe, and then it hit him. His head whipping to the droid then back to her, mouth agape. He'd expected her to be the daughter of a heroic pilot, not the daughter of the leader of the resistance.

"The novelty wears off pretty quickly," she assured him, tapping his chin with two fingers in order to close his slightly gaping mouth. "You'll see me just the same as everyone else on this base soon enough."

"Really?" Poe blurted before he could filter and his voice was full of scepticism. He found it hard to believe that the daughter of the boss didn't get special consideration.

"Really," Bree assured him. "General Organa is exceptional at being General Organa. She's not my mother when we're here. She's my superior, just as she is yours."

"So anyone can storm into the command centre and demand the General's immediate attention?" Poe raised a brow. Bree narrowed her eyes and leant forward on her palms.

"No," Bree agreed. "But since I'm the lead mechanic for the entire base I would probably get listened to whether I was her blood or not."

"You're quite young to be in charge," Poe noted.

"So are you," She fired right back. Poe conceded she had a point with that one. Bree sighed, leaning back and swiping some loose curls from her face. "I thought like you once," Bree admitted all traces of frustration had left her voice now. "I begged to be a part of the resistance officially, and not just the kid that was good at fixing things and helping out. When my mother finally allowed me to join I tried to act the same: still being a child, still being a brat." She scoffed, remembering the stunts she tried to pull. "And my mother punished each and every single infraction like I was a solider." Her eyes met Poe's, "She doesn't given me dispensation because I'm her child, and so neither does anyone else."

"Okay," Poe nodded, admitting to himself that he had perhaps just her unfairly, "I promise to treat you like any other grease monkey." He raised his hand as if swearing an oath.

"And I'll treat you just like every other cocky pilot," She replied without missing a beat, a flash of amusement passing over her eyes.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Breha didn't really keep tract of days anymore. Life was more of a constant flurry of activity: work was completed at all hours of the day; food, sleep and showers were indulged as and when you could fit them in; and family was seen as frequently as she could manage. It was the same struggle for all the mechanics and in her gut she knew this pace couldn't be maintained for much longer.

All that being said, Breha was thankful for the days she got to spend with Ben. There weren't many people on the base that understood the dark haired boy. Whilst they tended to believe in the force, actually seeing it flow so strongly around one person often unnerved them. She could only try to imagine how lonely that felt. So Breha did everything she could to take that away.

Although, as she was caught around the back of her right leg with a wooden stick and sent sprawling to the floor she was beginning to fear that she'd loose that original enthusiasm quite quickly.

"You're really out of practise," Ben commented. Bree looked up as her brother looked down at her, a frown pulling at her lips. Ben offered her his hand and helped pull her to her feet, the material of his loose white shirt was soft beneath her fingers. She dusted down the back of her dark brown trousers. "Have you been doing any of the exercises Uncle Luke set?" He asked. Bree bent down to pick up her own wooden stick, meant to simulate a lightsaber, and twisted the practise saber around before turning to face her brother. She shook her head guiltily and avoided her brother's gaze, choosing instead to look at his black trouser legs. "Bree," Ben scolded. "This stuff is important!"

"I know Ben," She said exasperated. "I'm here now," She opened her arms out wide emphasising her presence. Ben shook his head slightly but didn't push the issue further. Instead he charged at his sister once again, bringing the practise saber down on her. Her reactions were slower than they should be, but she still managed to parry the attack with her own practise saber. The two continued to dance around each other until Ben gained the upper hand once again and disarmed Bree, holding his practise saber to her neck.

"Bree-" Ben began but she cut him off.

"I can go again." Bree assured him.

"Wait." He sighed, lowering his own practise saber. "You're frustrated. I can feel it." Bree paused as she looked at her bother thoughtfully. "And you're mind is unfocussed. When you're here, in combat, you need to let go of everything else." Ben explained. Bree stared at her brother in shock, he'd never lectured her before. At this moment he didn't look 16 to her, he was a grown man.

"You're right," She agreed. Her mind wasn't focussed, she was too concerned about the functioning of the base, about her team.

"I can help," Ben said. He sat down on the floor cross-legged, indicating for Bree to join him. "Luke taught me this last time he visited." He explained as Bree sat down. "It's a form of joint meditation. I should be able help." Ben hesitated.

"I trust you Ben," Bree said.

"It's hard to explain, but I need you to let your mind go blank. Which shouldn't be too hard for you." He added cheekily. Breha opened one eye – unimpressed.

"Shut up Ben," She huffed, closing her eye again. She could hear the muffled sound of Ben trying to hide his snigger.

"Just accept my presence and guidance when you feel it." Ben explained once he'd sobered. Bree nodded and let herself experience the comforting sinking like feeling she felt whenever she settled her mind – just like before falling asleep. Soon enough the familiar presence of her brother made itself known to her. It was like he was offering her his hand like he had done moments before. Bree accepted her brother's presence and was guided to a place she hadn't been sure existed in her mind. It was still and pure, untouched by the trivial concerns she carried day to day. She was sure Ben could feel the gratitude she felt.

"You're welcome," Ben said quietly, once he'd stepped back from Bree's mind. Bree opened her eyes and smiled softly at Ben.

"Again?" She asked, picking up her practise saber.

"Again." Ben agreed. The pair rolled or flipped away from each other before engaging in combat once again. The change in Bree was instant, her mind was at peace and it showed in her improved form. The pair were a better match now. The fight ended this time with Ben bringing the practise saber down on Bree's right forearm forcing her to drop her own. "Better," Ben nodded. "Actually broke a sweat that time," he teased. Bree's retort was cut short as her communicator beeped. Her eyes glanced over to the flashing device that sat on top of her leather jacket. Ben was sent an apologetic glance before Bree turned and replied to the communicator. Ben could tell by her expression that he was about to lose his sister back to her work.

"I'm sorry Ben. I've been summoned." She said to Ben as she clipped the communicator back onto her black belt and pulled on her black leather jacket. She walked over to Ben and clasped his shoulder in her hand. "I will make dinner with you and mum later," She promised causing Ben's mouth the lift into a smile.

"Go," he jerked his head towards the base. Bree grinned at him before jogging away from the clearing. The practise space the pair used wasn't too far from the resistance base, but it was well hidden from view with the aid of the thick forest. Her communicator beeped again as she caught sight of the base and she assured Mareep that she was on her way, apparently the pilot was getting "real pissy".

She slowed to a walk as she entered the hanger. It was easy to spot where she was needed, both Mareep and Lara were around the problematic X wing as well as the "pissy" pilot. Bree took the time to look over to her left noting Poe and a couple of other pilots talking. She'd barely seen the new Commander since they spent a few hours working on his T-70 together, and if she had it was normally only passing each other in a corridor. She would be rushing somewhere with parts or data pads and he was usually preoccupied with his Commander duties.

"Bree," Lara greeted, having seen her first. Breha turned away from Poe and nodded her head to Lara in greeting. "The T-70 came in 3 hours ago as an assisted landing and there have been unexplained electrical abnormalities since then." Lara briefed as she handed Breha the data pad.

"Took you 40 minutes to even open the bloody hatch," A low voice growled catching Bree's attention. The young woman looked over and saw that there had been the unfortunate need to cut the hatch away from the fighter. Looking back to the pilot she could feel the frustration rolling off of him in waves. That was definitely the "pissy" pilot Mareep had mentioned. Still in his orange jump suit, the bald pilot was pacing like a caged animal.

"And you'd still be in there if it wasn't for us, be thankful." Mareep growled back at the pilot.

"Gentleman," Breha called, her voice wasn't raised but it carried the same tone both had experienced from the General. The pair silenced and stared at her. "Be adults not children, even if your toy is broken." She handed the data pad back to Lara and walked over to the ship. "What's your name pilot?" She asked.

"Dai Soko," He replied. "Blue squadron,"

"And do you recall anything of interest from your flight, anything abnormal?" She asked.

"Only that we dropped out of hyperspace and I lost all electrical control. I wasn't even able to make radio contact." He replied, shaking his head. "Commander Dameron realised that something was wrong and called in for an assisted landing." Bree looked away from the fighter, to the pilot and then to Poe. The commander was still on the other side of the room, but the commotion had caught his attention. He looked to be heading towards them.

"And we can't access the flight data." Mareep added, hands on his hips. Breha let out a thoughtful hum and turned back to the T-70. She raised a pale hand and placed it against the body of the T-70, for once her hands weren't covered in a layer of dirt and grease. Fingers ran across the metal and she could feel a prickling beneath her fingers rather than the usual smoothness. She turned her hand over and inspected it for any visible particulate, interestingly there was none. A thoughtful pout crossed her lips.

"Did you make a descent into any other atmospheres?" Bree asked Dai without turning around.

"No." Poe's voice took her by surprise. Breha turned and met the curious eyes of the Commander. "Just space." He added as he folded his arms over his broad chest. A thoughtful hum passed Breha's lips.

"R2-L4 I need you in hanger bay 3," She spoke into her communicator at the same as she walked over to the computer bay Mareep and Lara were stood at. The droid beeped an affirmative response over the communicator.

"You know what it is?" Mareep asked. His calloused hands rested just above the overalls that were tied low on his hips.

"I have a hunch," Bree replied. She pulled open a draw, rooting around in it. "Go and feel the side of the nose," She jerked her chin towards the T-70, instructing her two mechanics to go and repeat her actions. To her amusement Poe also took it upon himself to swipe his hand along the side of the T-70.

"Residue?" Lara asked as Bree found what she was looking for in the draw. The head mechanic held the small see through slide in her hand with triumph.

"An abnormally large amount of residue, that doesn't match what I'd expect from simply leaving and entering D'Qar's atmosphere." Bree replied as she walked back to the T-70 and began scratching some of the residue onto the slide.

"You're scratching my ship," Soko grumbled.

"We've also cut the hatch clean off. I'll make sure we tidy up when we're done." Breha replied. Poe hid his amused smirk by turning to face the fighter.

"So whatever left the residue is to blame for the electrical faults?" Lara asked.

"Pretty big coincidence if they're not connected." Breha nodded. Her eyes lifted as the royal purple and black R2-L4 beeped its arrival. "Perfectly timed." She grinned at the droid. It beeped back that is was a _perfect droid_. "That you are. Now if you wouldn't mind analysing this for me please?" She offered the slide to the R2 unit as she dropped to one knee. The droid beeped and opened a slot for the slide. "We're looking for ionic oscillation and its wavelength."

"Ions?" Soko raised a brow. "You think I flew through an ion cloud that no one detected? And a cloud I failed to put the shields up for?" The scepticism in voice demonstrated that he believed she was an idiot.

"Yes." Bree answered simply. "T-70s can't detect ion clouds whilst in hyperspace. I believe you dropped out of hyperspace and straight into an ion cloud." R2-L4 beeped loudly, interrupting Soko. "Thank you L4, could you share the wavelength with Lara?" It beeped again. "You flew into an ion cloud." Breha shrugged simply causing Soko to flush red.

"We're already able to access the flight data from the black box," Lara called over.

"Excellent, you know how to contact me if you need me." Bree nodded.

"That's it Solo?" Dai asked in disbelief.

"That's it." She shrugged her shoulders.

"Why didn't they call you sooner then?" Dai exclaimed irritably. Breha opened her mouth to respond but the crash of an object been thrown to the ground interrupted her.

"That is it!" Mareep growled as he marched over towards Breha and Dai. "I've had it with all this pilot superiority bullshit." Breha moved quickly to intercept Mareep before he could get close to the pilot. Her hold on Mareep didn't look like much, and probably didn't feel like much to Mareep. But Poe knew she could restrain the tall mechanic very quickly from her position if she needed to.

"Oh boo-hoo grease monkey," Dai fired back. A hand landed on the pilot's shoulder and he look up to see the stern face of his commander. "Commander Dameron," He straightened his posture.

"I don't think you're needed here anymore Soko," Poe nodded with his head towards the door.

"Sir," Soko nodded before turning and leaving the hanger. Poe made sure Soko left before turning and looking to Bree, her attention was solely on her mechanic though.

"Mareep," She said his name calmly. His body was shaking beneath her hand and his dark eyes were fixed on Soko's retreating back.

"He shouldn't speak like that," Mareep growled lowly. Breha's lips drew into a thin line. The man in front of her was spent. Fatigue weighed heavy on his sagging shoulders and she blamed his unusually short temper entirely on his exhaustion. She needed to chase her mother up on whether they were getting anymore mechanics soon.

"You're to step down for 24 hours Mareep," Breha said, removing her hand from his chest. He looked down at her with his mouth agape. "Send all of your pending data pads to my workshop, return to your quarters: shower, eat and sleep." She ordered. Mareep opened his mouth, "No objections, this is an order from your boss. Not a suggestion from your friend."

"Yes Sir." Mareep nodded before walking past her towards the hanger doors. Breha followed his back until he left, her gaze then found Poe's. Concern marred his usually carefree expression and she was sure she was wearing a similar expression however much she tried to force it off of her face.

"Can you manage alone here Lara?" She asked as she turned back to the blonde mechanic.

"If L4 can stay and monitor the electrical re-calibration I can get to work fixing the hatch." She replied. Bree looked to R2-L4 who beeped its compliance.

"I'll leave it to you then, contact me if anything comes up." Breha said. Lara realised that 'anything' included something that wasn't mechanical.

"Got it," Lara nodded and turned back to her work. Breha exhaled slowly as she walked towards the exit of the hanger. "Commander Dameron," She nodded as she passed Poe by.

Breha made it as far as 10 metres down the corridor before she heard booted footsteps jogging towards her.

"Breha," Poe called, causing her to stop and turn to face him.

"Poe," She greeted. "Is there something you need?"

"What was that in there?" he asked, hands on his hips.

"You know how mechanics and pilots can butt heads sometimes," Breha dismissed with a shrugged, playing down the incident.

"I've seen mechanics mouth off to pilots before and it wasn't like that." Poe said. "He looked ready to beat Soko to death."

"Just leave it alone Poe," Breha warned, glancing around to make sure none of the people passing by were listening in, especially with Poe's voice growing in volume.

"If you've got insubordination-"

"For the love of…" Breha snapped as she gripped Poe's arm and dragged him into a vacant side room, practically throwing him into the room before ensuring the door was closed firmly behind them.

"I don't care how much you like the guy, if he's being insubordinate you need to deal with it. You're his boss" Poe stared down at Breha.

"Mareep isn't insubordinate!" She exclaimed. "He has never stepped out before today and has nothing but respect for me."

"That's what _respect_ for you looks like huh?" Poe raised both eyebrows.

"What?" Breha couldn't grasp what his raised brows were insinuating.

"He was pretty quick to defend you in there," Poe crossed his arms over his chest. Breha was stunned at his accusation. She looked like he'd just slapped her around the face so Poe immediately knew he'd misjudged the situation - badly. Her voice was low when she next spoke to him. And if he was honest, the low tone scared him more than when she was shouting.

"Tell me Dameron, how many times have pilots you've lead into flight defended you when you've been insulted hmmm?" She asked rhetorically, "Yet when my mechanics do exactly the same thing you don't even for a second think it's because I've actually earnt their respect?" She had stalked closer as she was talking so that now she was looming into his personal space. "For them to defend me it must because they're in my pants, right?"

"Breha-"

"I knew you were cocky the moment I met you. I didn't expect you to be a chauvinistic arse." She hissed.

"Breha." Poe repeated. His hand reached out to grab her upper arm. Whilst the gentle touch was enough to persuade her to not storm out of the room, he could feel her muscles run tort beneath her leather jacket. "I'm sorry," Her fierce eyes met his and held him there until she was abated somewhat by the sincerity she found. "I shouldn't have made that snap judgement," He apologised. Breha opened her mouth before shutting it quickly and shrugging out of grasp.

"I'll talk to Mareep." She uttered, ignoring Poe's questioning glance.

"That's it? You're not going to tell me?" The annoyance in Poe's voice was clear as she back away from him towards the door.

"It doesn't concern you Poe, don't worry about it." She replied before slipping through the door. The door whipped closed behind her and Poe ran his hand through his hair in frustration.

Breha exited the room and made it two steps before she needed to lean back against the wall and take a couple of deep breaths. Once she was back in control she checked her watch, cursing as she realised she was late for dinner with Ben and her mother.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

"We can wait 5 more minutes." Ben said as Leia sent her son anther questioning glance. The two were sat at the dinner table, meals still covered in front of them. Ben looked across the table to the empty seat, willing Breha to hurry up. The door to the private room opened and relief filled Ben as his sister glided into the room.

"Sorry I'm late," Breha apologised as she took her seat at the table. Breha looked up and saw Ben's raised eyebrow, she gave an apologetic rise of her shoulders.

"That's okay, you're here now." Leia smiled. She was truly surprised that Breha managed to make an appearance. Now that all three were at the table they could finally begin eating. It was pleasant, it reminded Breha of how times used to be. Even back to a time where the fourth chair, opposite Leia, had been occupied by her father and Ben had been in a highchair. She'd almost fooled herself into forgetting the base existed outside of the room. All of the work and frustration just ceased to exist; that was until her communicator beeped. The conversation stopped dead and all eyes turned to Breha. Her own eyes closed in frustration as she inhaled slowly. The communicator beeped again causing Breha to look nothing but apologetic towards her family.

"Go," Leia nodded her head towards the door.

"I'm sorry." Breha sighed and she got up from the table and left the room as quickly as she had entered it. Ben watched the door close behind his sister and then turned to look at the abandoned half eaten meal that was left on the table.

"Breha here," She answered the communicator as she walked through the corridor towards the main body of the base. A series of frantic beeps followed through the communicator and Breha stopped dead at what droid was telling her. "No," She whispered to herself. The droid beeped again snapping Breha out of her shock. The dark haired girl suddenly took off in a sprint.

Poe and Iolo Arana were chatting quite happily as they walked through the corridor. As it happened Poe had caught his old squad mate just as Iolo had returned from a scouting mission and both were well in need of food. They rounded a corner and jumped in surprise as a smaller figure shot around them. Stunned, the two watched the mechanic continue sprinting down the corridor.

"Where's the fire?" Iolo asked, eyebrows raised. He looked over at Poe and was surprised to see a rather serious expression shadow his face. "Come on, food." Iolo used the back of his hand to tap Poe's chest, pulling the Commander from his thoughts.

"Right," Poe's features lightened when he looked back to Iolo.

The medic on standby was already there when Breha arrived. Her heart dropped to her stomach as she saw Jak laid unconscious and limp on the cold floor of his workshop. She was stunned to the spot as she watched skilled hands work over Jak's body. It was the beeping of Jak's droid R2-N2 that once again spurred her into movement.

"How is he?" Her voice was hoarse as she willed herself to move towards Jak and the medic. The silver eyes of the medic glanced towards her as she knelt by Jak. She was close enough to show her concern for the mechanic, but far enough away to allow the medic the space he needed to work.

"He's sustained considerable plasma burns to his torso and right forearm." The medic replied. Worry pulled at Breha's features. "But he's being treated quickly which is good." Breha let out a low breath of relief. The pair looked up as two more medics arrived with a gurney. Jak was quickly placed on the bed. Breha just stood to the side – useless. She could do nothing but simply watched the three medics discuss Jak quickly before moving him on. Her eyes found Jak's face, and even as they moved through the corridors, she was unable to look away from him. Creases of worry seemed to have been pressed into his forehead and dark shadows were visible even with his eyes closed.

The medical team were swift with their movements as he made it to the med-bay, he was hooked up to a few machines and placed under the derma-grow machine. Breha raised a hand to her mouth as she finally saw the extent of the burns across his chest. The skin repair on the base was good, but burns that bad were going to scar.

"He will be fine you know," The silver eyed medic from earlier assured Breha as he stopped next to her.

"I believe you." Breha removed her hand from her mouth and crossed her arms over her chest. "But that doesn't take away from the fact that he got injured." The medic looked down at Breha, a thoughtful expression crossing his features.

"No it doesn't." He agreed. Silence fell between the two as they watched Jak being treated. "There is something I'm quite worried about though." The medic spoke quietly. A seed of dread was sown in Breha's stomach as she turned to look at the medic. "His burns we can heal. But he is concernedly undernourished and dehydrated." Breha's lips drew into a thin line. "And now I'm beginning to wonder if all the mechanics on the base are in the same state?" Breha's eyes widened as she stared up at the medic, silver eyes scanned her up and down. He was taller than her by at least a head. Strong bone structure soften only by the loose waves of dark hair on the top of his head – the sides and back cut short. But it was his sharp silver eyes – analysing - that caught Breha by surprise.

"You're perceptive." She grumbled.

"I'm right." The medic replied. Breha couldn't argue with him, but that didn't mean she had to tell him that she agreed with him. The medic sighed. "You need to safeguard your team."

"I know," Breha murmured sadly, "I'm trying." She looked so small and young to the medic in that moment. Breha turned her gaze back to the medic beside her. He wasn't pitying her, medics in particular knew how stressful and understaffed the base could be sometimes. He was genuinely concerned.

"If you need help, we can see what we can do." The medic motioned with his head to indicate the medical team. He was met with a soft smile from Breha. The offer was sweet.

"No offense, but what I really need are more mechanics." Bree said simply. "And Jak knows that. So I'm warning you now, the second _he_ thinks he's fit to work again, he'll be up and out of here whether you've discharged him or not."

"Thanks for the heads up. I'll mark him as a flight risk." He said, a small smile pulling at the corners of his mouth. "I'm Kit, Kit Lohan." He offered her his hand.

"Breha." She took his hand.

"Lohan, could I have a hand over here please?" A voice called from the other side of the med-bay.

"On my way." Kit replied. He looked down to Breha.

"See you around." She nodded. He smiled at her with a nod before turning and getting back to his work. Breha stayed with Jak for a few more minutes before leaving the med-bay and returning to her duties. There was a conversation that needed to be had – desperately.

Breha entered the command centre, spotting her mother at the heart of it with ease. The General and Captain Kun were deep in conversation over a star chart. Leia sensed her daughter's arrival and looked over to her. Breha caught her mother's gaze and nodded towards the smaller side room. Leia nodded her head in to show she understood. The mechanic entered the small side room and took a seat at the 8 person table that was in there. Less than 5 minutes later Leia joined her daughter, closing the door behind her.

"There have been some incidents." Breha began with a sigh. Leia frowned as she took a seat. "Mareep Dekesh acted out of line towards a pilot resulting in a 24 hours stand down. And just now Jak Taaho has been admitted to the med-bay as a result of severe plasma burns to his torso – I'm not sure how long he'll be out for yet." Breha briefed her mother. Leia's jaw dropped slightly.

"Will he make a full recovery?" Leia asked concernedly.

"The medics say he will." Breha nodded, running a hand back and over her forehead to pull the curls from her face. "Both of these incidents are consequences of the sheer lack of mechanics on the base."

"I'll make recruitment our top priority." Leia assured her daughter. "I have some operatives out at the moment who I can contact." Breha nodded as she inhaled deeply.

"I don't know how we're going to manage mum." Breha looked at Leia desperately. She wasn't her General in that moment, she was her mother. And Breha desperately needed her mother's support. "We were stretched paper thin before this happened."

"I have faith in you Breha." Leia assured her daughter fiercely. Soft, warm hands cupped Breha face and she found herself leaning into the touch. "You'll get through this." The younger girl nodded. With a final, tight lipped smile Leia rose from her seat and exited the room. Breha sighed as she pulled her communicator from her belt and raised it to her lips.

"All mechanics please report to Workshop 4 immediately, please?" She announced, trying to keep her voice level.

With Mareep and Jak both out, the following 24 hours were hell for all mechanics on the base – but they survived, just. The news of Jak's injury had hit the team hard when Bree had told them, he was an older brother figure to a majority of them.

It had been a sight to behold for Kit as he watched with interest as countless mechanics stopped by to visit Jak for however long they could manage. It wasn't until Jak awoke two days after his injury that Kit saw Breha again. The brown haired mechanic, as Breha had warned, had tried to escape from med-bay. Upon hearing this, Breha made her way down to the med-bay to order him into bed and to quit moaning to the med staff. She even seemed deadly serious about the threats she made if she was to hear of Jak trying to leave before he was ready again. Jak was a perfectly behaved patient after that. On her way out of the med-bay Breha had approached Kit, subtly enquiring how Jak was truly doing and what his prognosis was. Three weeks – three weeks and Jak would be back to work.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

A week into the never ending shift and it felt like her very bones were aching. It was the exhaustion. Hunger and hydration were easy to balance, she could deal with those walking from one call to the next. But she didn't sleep anymore. She found down periods to nap in but they never lasted more than an hour and a half and were few and far between. Yet as she saw Lara rounding the corner Breha forced her posture straight and lifted her expression.

"Bree," Lara nodded a chipper greeting as she passed the younger woman in the corridor. Breha nodded in reply, not trusting her voice. Lara eyed her boss as she passed her. Every mechanic had expected a drastic increase in work with Jak being out of action for three weeks, but the hit they were all expecting never came. When they questioned Breha about it she claimed that she'd spoken to the General about the circumstances and not to worry about it. As cryptic as the answer was everyone accepted it. Lara was one of the few who took the time to truly look at her boss as she slowly started to look unhealthier and unhealthier with each passing day – clearly over worked. The blonde knew it would be the right thing to intervene and stop Breha, but the threat of more work if she did would jeopardise the little time she had to see her son. And as much as she adored her boss, her son came first every time.

Lara entered hanger 3 and set her tool kit down by one of the generators responsible for keeping the fuel chilled. Five minutes into her work and a pair of green trouser legs stepped into her periphery.

"Commander Dameron," Lara squeaked in surprise as she rushed to stand.

"Lara isn't it?" Poe asked.

"Yes, Sir." She nodded, cursing inwardly as she felt heat spread across her cheeks. A rogue grin pulled at Poe lips.

"I was wondering if you could help me. I'm in need of a new astromech." He tilted his head slightly to the side.

"Of course," Lara nodded. "There's usually always a few that aren't claimed." She quickly swiped at a computer screen that was on the wall. "Yeah, we have 4 not currently attached to a pilot," She pointed.

"Any recommendations?" Poe asked.

"I'm afraid I don't know the astromechs all that well," Lara apologised. "Jak and Breha know them best. And Jak is off duty for another two weeks."

"How's his recovery going?" Poe asked.

"Really well actually," Lara smiled happily. "I saw him yesterday, he's itching to leave."

"Good to hear he's doing well." There was that charming grin of his again. "So Breha is who I need to see about an astromech then?" He asked. Lara nodded her response.

"I just saw Breha in the corridor, looked like she was towing a broken protocol droid behind her so she's probably in her workshop." Lara replied.

"Thanks," Poe winked. The heat in her cheeks that had subsided returned with vengeance as she caught the wink.

The protocol droid Lara had mentioned was outside of the workshop when Poe arrived, which he thought was odd. He entered the workshop and was confused to see Breha, with her back to him, leant on the workbench with her palms flat. R2-L4 was beeping a low, concerned tone beside her.

"Breha?" Poe asked. She didn't even stir. "Breha?" He repeated louder. The black haired mechanic stumbled to the side, catching her balance quickly as her eyes snapped open, wildly looking around. Poe stared at her incredulously, mouth hanging slightly agape. Breha's wild eyes found Poe and the transformation was incredible. In the blink of an eye the mechanic forced her posture straight, face relaxed and eyes focused. It was like the last 30 seconds hadn't happened. But Poe was no fool, when he looked for it he could still see the traces of a worn down women who looked twice the age she was supposed to.

"What can I do for you?" Breha asked calmly.

"You look ill" Poe stated simply. Breha rolled her eyes.

"And I heard rumours that you were the new sweet talker on the base." She quipped easily. She caught Poe's unimpressed, raised eyebrow and sighed through her nose. "Do you need a mechanic Poe?" Breha asked. A series of beeps to her left sprouted from R2-L4, _it's you that needs mechanics_. Her eyes closed in frustration before opening and frowning down at the droid. "I will remove your vocal processor." The droid beeped sassily in return. She looked back to Poe who was stood, firmly fixed to the spot with his arms crossed.

"I'm not leaving until you explain." He stated simply.

Breha eyed the man in her workshop critically. The young mechanic made it a point not to get overly invested with the newbies when they first joined. They all tended to arrive with a wealth of enthusiasm, desperate to help and aid the resistance anyway they could; striving to go above and beyond their position – that didn't last long. They'd soon realise that the position they were placed in was hard enough without the extra effort. From experience Breha found that newbies, whilst their heart was in the right place, were often unreliable. Her mind told her that Poe Dameron was exactly the same. A young Commander, often underestimated because of his youth, keen to prove that he was worth your attention. Yet as she repeated this thought in her head her gut instinct disagreed vehemently with her. Against all logic and previous experience her gut told her to confide in the man in front of her – and she never went against her instinct.

"The long and the short of it is: there aren't enough mechanics to service the base." Breha admitted. Her originally rod straight posture relaxed as she leant back against the workbench. Honey eyes closed as she raised a hand to pinch the bridge of her nose. Poe's eyes softened as he caught sight of her worn hands. Red welts, grease and broken callouses went half way to showing that Breha was trying to literally work her fingers to the bone. "There hasn't been for some time." Breha admitted bitterly.

Her eyes shot open as she felt a warm hand gently take her wrist, pulling her hand away from the bridge of her nose. Poe hadn't made a sound when he'd crossed the workshop. Honey eyes were wide as they watched the tall Commander turn her hand over to inspect her palm. His brows furrowed in concern – her palms were in a worse state than the back of her hands. She interpreted his look as one of pity and pulled her hands back from his grasp. Pity she didn't need; pity she didn't have time for.

"I couldn't tell when I first arrived." Poe said simply, his hands falling to his sides.

"Well I have the best team of mechanics in the galaxy." She stated simply, the fierceness of her gaze dared anyone to disagree with her.

"But then Jak got injured and you haven't got a full team anymore." Poe finished for her.

"Yeah," Breha agreed, her gaze softening.

"I assume you've been to the General with this?" Poe asked. A bitter smile tugged at Breha's lips. She'd been to the General countless times with this issue – a year ago they could have nipped the problem in the bud by taking on more mechanics but staffing hadn't been a major priority back then. Well it was now.

"I have." She nodded. "There are people out looking to recruit mechanics but to find mechanics with the right level of skill and who want to fight with the resistance – they're not always quick to find." Breha crossed her arms over her chest. "Mechanics aren't like pilots," She smirked up at him. "We don't showboat our skill and end up getting talked about."

"I don't showboat. I just fly that well naturally." Poe grinned. Breha scoffed but amusement was clearly written across her face.

"I'll believe that when I see it, Dameron." She replied. The amusement of the moment slowly faded and the pair sobered once again.

"So what are you doing about your staffing issue?" Poe asked.

"Well with Jak being out, his work load has fallen to a couple of us." She added off hand. "But even when he comes back to work we're still in the same shit." Breha stared off at the corner of her workshop as she thought through her dilemma for what felt like the thousandth time. "It's getting harder to equally spread the work just take Lara for example, she barely sees her kid anymore. I'm having to be really selective over which pilots I let Mareep work with; and rather frustratingly it's the T-70s that need the most attention at the moment." Her eyes found Poe's. "I assume half the squads are being sent out on new patrol routes based on the damage they're coming back with." Poe's eyebrows raised, besides the squads going out on the new patrols, only a select few knew. Breha wasn't supposed to know. "I know you can't tell me." She dismissed his look with a wave of her hand. Poe was stunned for a second before he shook his head in silent disbelief. It was at times like this Poe witnessed what it truly looked like to be completely in sync with the base. Breha had grown up with all of this, she was a part of this. Her shift away from the bench she was leaning on to a small couch pulled Poe out of this thoughts.

"Did you say it was the T-70s that are most of the work load?" He asked. Breha made a 'hum' of agreement as she opened a bottle of water.

"Train the pilots up to help." Poe said simply. Breha choked in surprise at his words, almost aspirating the water.

"You're joking right?" She asked incredulously as she turned to face him.

"Not in the slightest." Poe shook his head fiercely. "Pilots would be prefect for it, they spend half their week in those fighters they know them like the back of their hand."

"True, except for the fact that pilots would rather be flying their fighters than servicing them and aren't quiet about that fact." Breha placed her hands on her hips. "Trying to convince pilots to spend time servicing their fighters is nearly impossible. You're all stubborn."

"I'm very persuasive." Poe grinned slyly. Breha shook her head in disbelief, the grin on his face clearly indicated he thought this was an incredible idea.

"Poe-"

"Breha," He cut over her. "If I get the pilots on side will you show them what to do?"

"That's a big 'if' Poe." She warned.

"That's a yes then?" He smirked. Breha nodded with a slight roll of her eyes. Without a further word Poe was dashing out of the workshop leaving a very confused Breha.

"Did he even say what he came in here for?" Breha asked R2-L4 in confusion. The droid merely stood there, as if trying to make a point. "Oh for the love of- I'm not actually going to remove your vocal processor." Breha rolled her eyes.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Leia's fondness for her new Commander had only grown since he'd been on the base. His recent actions in particular gave the General great cause to believe that the decision to bring him into the Resistance had been the right one. She'd felt it was right from the beginning, when she first laid eyes on the man, and now he was proving himself.

The General had been surprised, to say the least, when Poe had approached her with a rather peculiar request regarding the pilots. The notion of pilots servicing their own fighters wasn't a new one; in fact it was quite an old one. Almost two decades ago when the base on D'Qar was being established there had been an inherent need for pilots to look after their crafts – there was no one else to do it. From experience Leia knew that it wasn't a permanent solution, but it probably was just what Breha and her team needed to tide them over until more mechanics arrived. As Leia neared her daughter's workshop she shook her head slightly in wonder. How Poe managed to convince her daughter to go ahead with this she had no idea.

Breha was sat at a stool by her bench, leaning over a deactivated droid and elbow deep in its circuits. Her eyes were staring straight ahead since there was no way for her to gain a direct view of the area she was working on. The mechanic had to trust her fingers, visualisation and instinct.

"Plasma torch." She called as she held up her free hand. Ben looked up from his slouched position on the small couch. The item she called for was currently floating in the space in front of Ben along with a collection of other tools and small parts. His right hand was out in front of him, palm up, as he controlled the objects. The boys focus switched to the torch and with a smooth pass of his hand the item found its way to Breha's raised hand. "Thanks." She said. Breha lowered the torch into the droid and set to work repairing the circuit. There weren't many who would risk introducing a plasma torch to an environment they couldn't physically see, especially one they had their fingers in.

A knock on the workshop door caught the attention of both Solo siblings. Leia entered the workshop and wasn't the least bit surprised to see Ben sprawled out on the couch. She was certain Breha had acquired the worn piece of furniture with her brother solely in mind. One look at their mother and both children knew that she was there as General Organa, not their mother, which meant she was there for Breha.

"Commander Dameron has surprise for you." Leia announced amusedly. Bree's brow furrowed slightly before she remembered the conversation she'd had with the pilot close on two days ago.

"He hasn't…?" Bree hesitated to ask.

"Right now in hanger bay 3," Leia said with a small smile of amusement.

"Impossible." Breha shook her head in disbelief. She stood abruptly from her stool, grabbing her leather jacket from the arm of the couch as she pasted Ben.

"What?" Ben asked confused as he watched his sister rush out of the workshop.

Breha breezed through the door to Hanger bay 3 and felt her mouth open slightly in shock. Collected in the centre of the hanger there were close on 20 pilots, all stood around a computer terminal that had been set up. Poe spotted her over the heads of the pilots around him and jogged over to meet her, her walk had slowed as a result of her shock.

"Thought you were never going to show up. I was almost going to have to instruct them myself." Poe grinned boyishly. Breha finally closed her parted lips and turned to look at Poe. She looked at him as if he was a completely new creature she'd never seen before. Poe faltered slightly under the look she was giving him. "You did say you'd instruct them if I gathered them together." Poe reminded.

"Yeah, I did. And I will." She uttered quickly. Her eyes drifted back to the pilots waiting for her. "I just didn't expect you'd do it, figured it was all talk." She explained. Poe initially took offence at her words. Was that all he appeared to her? All talk and no action? That was until she looked up at him with large honey eyes. "This is incredible. You're incredible." She smiled softly up at him. She hadn't expected him to do anything because people rarely did, Poe realised.

"And you've not even see me fly yet." He flashed her that dangerous rogue grin of his. Breha bit her lower lip as a smile caught the corners of her mouth.

"Fall in Dameron, class is about to start." She nodded her head towards the collection of pilots.

"Yes Sir," He winked. Breha couldn't explain the elation that flowed through her being as she made her way to the centre of the pilots. It was highly likely to be something to do with the fact that for the first time in a long time she felt like the lead mechanic of the resistance and not simply a child who had been handed something she couldn't possibly control. Her eyes met Poe's as she began to speak to the cohort – she owed him a lot for this.

Poe watched from his position in the class as Breha began to teach. He'd seen her take control of repairs before – like the ion cloud incident – where she'd also used it as a teaching opportunity for her team. He'd never had a doubt that she would be capable of teaching the pilots he'd gathered. But as he watched her address a group of pilots with such natural ease and persona it wasn't hard to see how she'd ended up with the responsibilities she had at such a young age.

The class ended after a few hours, and whilst Breha had barely scratched the surface of the intricacies of the X-Wing T-70 she'd definitely armed the pilots with enough knowledge to keep them entertained until the next session. Poe hung back as a couple of pilots queried Breha on some of the finer points of what she had said. He could see the passion light her features as she spoke to another person who shared her interest.

The last of the pilots eventually filed out and Breha finally looked over to Poe. A knowing smile claimed his face as he raised a brow and opened his arms out wide motioning to the success of the class. The action caused Breha to roll her eyes but she couldn't help the smile forming on her lips.

"You loved that." Poe accused knowingly as he sauntered the final few steps towards her. She bit her lower lip guiltily but didn't give him the satisfaction of confirming his statement.

"This could actually work." Breha said, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Of course it will. I came up with and organised it." Poe shrugged as if it was obvious. Breha shot him a look with a raised brow.

"Don't get cocky, Dameron. They're interested for now. I need to keep their attention yet." She reminded.

"Just keep speaking like you are doing and you won't have an issue." He assured her. "You kept the mechanics relevant to how they fly."

"How else do you keep a pilots attention?" Breha quipped teasingly. Poe stilled at her words. He felt a twinge in his stomach as his dark eyes studied the profile of her face, dropping to her pale pink lips before he realised what he was doing. Poe caught what he'd done as Breha turned to the side to look up at him, his eyes immediately darting up to meet hers.

"You know," Poe cleared his throat, at the same time trying to clear his mind of the image of her lips. "The way you were speaking, you really know how these things handle." She looked up at him and her honey eyes flashed teasingly. "Almost like you've flown them before?"

"Hmmm, wouldn't that be a strange concept." She replied with ambiguous sarcasm that just left Poe none the wiser as to whether she'd flown a T-70 or not. But before he could question her further she changed the topic. "So, you never actually said what it was you came to see me about in my workshop a couple of days ago. You ran away and started organising this instead."

"Oh right," Poe blinked owlishly. "I need an astromech." He said.

"Shouldn't be a problem." Breha nodded. "I can-"

"Hay Breha!" A voice called loudly from the Hanger doors. Both looked up to see Iivan waving he younger mechanic towards him. Breha raised her hand in acknowledgement. "Why don't you come around to my workshop later and we can look at what's best?" Breha suggested as she turned back to Poe. He nodded. "Are you free at 18:00?" She asked.

"See you then." He agreed. "Oh and Breha," He called as she started to walk towards Iivan, she turned back to face him. "You were impressive up there." He motioned with his head towards the computer she'd used to help illustrate some of her teaching. Her cheeks ran hot at his compliment and she quickly turned and headed towards Iivan. Poe smirked.

"What the hell is going on with the pilots?" Iivan asked, completely bewildered as Breha fell into step next to him. The older mechanic had just been passing through the corridor when he overheard a very mechanical conversation from a large group of pilots.

"Brace yourself because you're not going to believe what I've just done." Breha grinned excitedly up at him.

 **So I'm a few chapters into this story now and I would like to thank everyone who has reviewed/followed/favorited it's hard to explain the support it provides!**

 **I especially want to thank those who review and point out what they like and why; and those who provide constructive criticism. It really helps me to improve my writing (because, this is faaaaaar from perfect) as well as develop my characters.**

 **To Midnight-flames** **: my first ever review! You have no idea how heart-warming that message was… the first two chapters were by far the most nerve wracking to post.**

 **To the Guest reviewer who liked Breha's hot-headedness** **: Your review came at the perfect time when I was debating how force sensitive to make Breha – your review really helped with my story planning and character development plans!**

 **To FeatheryWolf, ShigureAyameHatoriFanClub, Nicole85, saramichellegellarfan1, and 'me'** **: You're frequent reviews of support are exactly what I need to help me through small bouts of writers block and keep me on track with writing chapters!**

 **To JunJunyil** **: I'm glad that my plot and characters beat your expectations! And the fact that I'm writing the movie characters in character is one of the best compliments I've received!**

 **AND as for your review on chapter 5, I agree that is was a sort of 'filler chapter' (so is this chapter to be honest) but with the plot line I have in mind this was the sensible way to divide up the chapters.**

 **AND as for the development of Breha/Poe I'm keeping that under-wraps :P but be assured that it will happen.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

News of the pilots being trained up spread quickly amongst the mechanics and Breha had had her team coming up to her all afternoon in disbelief. But once the disbelief subsided the relief on each and every mechanics face was impossible to miss. Every member of her team had worked like a dog to keep the base functioning and finally, the reprieve they sought after was in sight. Breha was sure the pilots didn't fully realise how much of the slack they were going to be picking up, and since there were so many of them they probably never would. But every single mechanic knew, and they were extremely grateful for it.

There was one mechanic left on the base who hadn't heard the news. As Breha entered the med-bay Jak caught sight of her immediately, the knowing smile was hard to miss.

"I'm being let out?" Jak asked hopefully. Breha shook her head with a laugh as she sat on the chair by his bed. Jak was sat up in his own bed, data pads and magazines surrounding him. His eagerness to leave was almost palpable.

"I'm leaving that decision to medic Lohan." Breha said as she jerked her head to the side office the silver eyed medic was sat in.

"Err, I'm sick of being in here. Especially when I know you guys need me out there." He groaned.

"Actually," The grin in her tone caught Jak's attention.

"You're breaking me out?" he asked hopefully, his voice a low whisper so none of the medics heard.

"No! For the love of- you're in the med-bay Jak, not prison." Breha rolled her eyes giving his shoulder and gentle push so that he'd lean back onto his bed.

"You just sounded happy, what else was I to think?" He defended.

"Oh, maybe, that I spent two hours teaching a group of 20 or so pilots the basic mechanics of their T-70s?" She shrugged nonchalantly. Her feigned indifference didn't last long as a gleeful smirk soon claimed her face at Jak's pure look of confusion.

"… What?" He finally managed.

"Commander Dameron has managed to convince the pilots that knowing the mechanics of their own T-70s is a good idea, they're going to start doing the basic servicing of their own fighters." She explained. Breha smiled as she saw relief flash across Jak's eyes.

"How?" Jak finally managed to speak.

"Honestly, I'm not sure I want to know how he did it." Breha chuckled.

"I owe the man a drink," Jak ran his hands over his face.

"At this rate he won't have to buy another drink for the rest of his life." Breha said. The notion of buying Poe a drinks of thanks had been a popular one.

"The man earnt it." Jak replied.

Breha and Jak spoke for a few more moments, mainly Jak giving Breha a list of droids to check up on – the ones that could be temperamental – before they said their goodbyes. Breha was almost out of the med bay when she heard her name.

"Breha." Kit Lohan called. She turned to see the medic taking long strides to meet her. He didn't say another word as he stopped in front of her. The medic went straight to taking her wrists gently and holding her knackered hands up. Silver eyes narrowed as he saw the sorry state of her hands. Her callouses were normally hidden underneath a thin layer of grease and oil that never seemed to leave; but with the amount of work that last few days her hands had taken a beating. Large callouses had been ripped open, tried to reform and been ripped open again.

"Hi Kit, yeah sure it's fine for you to manhandle my arms." Breha frowned up at the medic. Kit's silver eyes snapped to hers.

"We're sorting this out now." He said firmly as he motioned towards her hands.

"Can't it wait I have to meet someone?" She asked.

"No. Now." Kit said simply as he led her over to a bed bay. Breha sat up on the side of the bed and didn't hide her irritation as she waited for Kit to gather his equipment and take a seat facing her. Kit took her right hand and placed it over a bowl of warm blue liquid, gently he began to clean away the dirt. "What do you do? Grind your hands against gears in your spare time?"

"Hmm, it's one of my favourite past times." Breha replied her words laced with sarcasm. Silver eyes glanced up to see an irritated Breha.

"You don't have to be so irate," Kit said as he began applying a clear gel to her hands. To Kit's amusement Breha flinched. She hadn't flinched as he'd been wiping away the grime from the damaged skin, arguably the most uncomfortable part. She'd reacted as he put on a gel that felt pleasant on the skin. "This won't take long." He assured. He moved onto her left hand. "Besides we have to grab you mechanics whilst we can. You're lot make terrible patients." The irritation slowly faded from Breha's face as she eyed the medic delicately caring for her hands.

"We have made your job harder than necessary on a few occasions." She conceded. Kit looked up as she finished applying the gel to her left hand. Silver eyes glinted in amusement as he eyed the young mechanic.

"That, I'll take as an apology." He grinned, pulling off the gloves from his hands. Breha rolled her eyes. "How's your staffing issue coming along?" He asked, leaning back in his chair as the pair waited for the gel to work.

"Hopefully not as much of an issue." Breha replied.

Poe knocked on the door to Breha's workshop at 18:00, despite there being no reply he opened the door. There was no sign of her in the room, or that she'd been in there recently. He moved further into the room as he ran a hand over his hair. He glanced down at his watch he could wait for her in here, she wouldn't be that late. Poe moved around the workshop, his hands brushing over various spare parts and contraptions Breha had put together. With a small slip he accidently knocked a spare part over, the fist sized metal object taking some papers to the floor with it. It was as he was collecting the papers that an image caught his eyes. The sketched was an exploded view of a BB unit, only it had been extensively modified if the sketched was anything to go by. A knowing smirk crossed his face as he rifled through looking for more images and details of the astromech. This BB unit seemed a lot more appropriate than the frustrating R2 unit he currently flew with.

Breha entered her workshop 15 minutes after she'd arranged to meet Poe. She wasn't surprised to see the young pilot already in there. Her eyebrow did raise in curiosity as she caught Poe staring intently at the computer screen.

"Sorry I'm late Poe." Breha apologised as she walked towards the pilot, hands on the pockets of her overalls.

"I kept myself entertained." He said, barely glancing away from the screen. Breha was too curious not to see what had caught the commander's attention so thoroughly. The mechanic stopped by the side of Poe. On the screen was the extensive inventory of all the astromechs used by the base.

"Have you found a droid you'd like to fly with?" She asked.

"Yes, but I can't seem to find it on the data base." Poe sighed in frustration. He stepped back as Breha motioned for him to let her have a go with the computer.

"Do you know its designation?" Breha asked.

"No." Poe replied.

"Of course, that would be too helpful." Breha quipped. Poe's dark eyes narrowed on the back of her head.

"It's a BB unit." He explained as he put the sketches down in front of Breha. "I found the designs for it in here." Breha's eyes dropped to the sketches and she ran her pale fingers over the image. "The designs are dated back 4 years ago so I figured it'd be on the system by now."

"This unit isn't on the system. It's not built." Breha replied simply. Poe watched as she moved away from the computer and towards the dark corner underneath her workbench. Breha bent down and pulled out a blanket covered mass. Poe had taken a few steps to join her and watched with intrigue as she pulled the blanket. Underneath the dusty dark brown blanket was the barely recognisable shell of a BB unit. "This is the droid you're looking for."

"You were building it?" Poe asked. Breha nodded. "Why'd you stop?"

"Didn't have the time. Didn't have the parts." Breha replied. Her fingers traced over the dark metal of the incomplete droid.

"When will you start working on it again?" Poe asked. Breha opened her mouth to claim she wouldn't but Poe spoke first "I can see that you want to. And you have the time now." He reasoned. Breha looked back down at the droid, tempted.

"I still don't have all of the parts. It's made up of improvisations as it is." She motioned towards the droid.

"I can get you the parts." Poe shrugged as if it was simple.

"Oh you can, can you?" She raised a brow.

"I managed to get you 20 stand in mechanics didn't I?" He smirked smugly. Breha frowned, she got the distinct impression he wasn't going to let her forget that any time soon.

"Okay. If you get the parts I need and if I have time to finish it. I will." Breha agreed. Poe grinned widely.

"Pleasure doing business with you, Breha Solo." He said. The charm in his voice was like honey to her ears and to Breha's dismay she could feel the heat pooling in her cheeks. She cleared her throat and nodded, distracted herself with tiding away the sketches. In the periphery of her vision she could make out Poe's figure, arms crossed causing his muscular arms to stretch the material of his shirt.

"I'll have a look back over my work so far and get a list of parts to you as soon as possible." Breha fought to keep her voice level. The more she thought about droids and mechanics the more the heat drained from her cheeks.

"I look forward to it." Poe replied. "See you soon Breha." She made a hum of agreement as she finally turned back around to face him.

"Bye Poe," She smiled and watched as the young pilot turned and left the workshop.

The following morning Poe was sat in the mess hall with a couple of other pilots on the squadron he commanded. Stories of events before they had joined the resistance were being regaled over their breakfast so the table was in high spirits. It had been hard for Poe when he'd first arrived and taken over command of the squadrons. Since he was so young it wasn't uncommon for older pilots to doubt him. It was only after he flew with his squadrons and demonstrated his ability to fly and to lead that he was accepted. The mood at the table sobered suddenly causing Poe to raise his eyes from his breakfast. The other pilots at the table were looking over Poe's shoulder. He followed their gaze and raised a brow as he caught Bree walking towards him, data pad in hand.

"Morning," Breha nodded to the rest of the table, her honey eyes then turned directly to Poe. "My shopping list." She said simply as she handed him the data pad with the list of parts she needed. Her statement earned a few confused glances from the other pilots. Poe smirked as he skimmed over the list. "Still think you can get everything?" Breha asked, hands finding her hips.

"Should be fine." Poe nodded. "The Nubian pears might be hard to find though." He smirked teasingly. Breha rolled her eyes, but Poe caught the twitch of amusement at the corner of her mouth.

"Wise-ass pilot." Breha muttered, loud enough for Poe to hear as she turned and left them to their breakfast.

…

 **To .fire:** **Thank you for reviewing! I'm so glad that you're enjoying each chapter and that you're picking up on the subtle developments! Ben's neglect is actually quite hard to write without making it over the top and unrealistic; so I'm thrilled that you like how it's being portrayed. :D**

 **To JunJunyil** **: You are more than welcome for the regular updates! And have no fear grumpy Breha has not disappeared, there's just a little more too her than snarky comments :D. Let the adventure continue.**

 **To ShigureAyameHatoriFanClub:** ***Joins in happy dance* So glad you're enjoying the story so far! I'm so glad that you find the chapters are well written and paced! That is MASSIVE praise for me!**

 **To heroherondaletotherescue:** **Thank you for your review :D As a writer, hearing praise like 'great character development' are three of THE best words to hear. I will try to continue to do the same!**

 **To the Guest reviewer from Fen 2** **nd** **:** **Thank you and here is more! Enjoy.**

 **To Katerinaki:** **There is no need to apologise for not reviewing! The fact that you like Breha and have called this the best mechanicOC/Poe story you've read is incredible praise indeed. Breha is formidable indeed! When I was creating her character, I realised there was no way she couldn't be. She has Leia for a mother, Han Solo for a father, Luke Skywalker for an uncle and I guess Chewbacca as an uncle as well! I too know the frustration of reading slow-burn fanfictions but… here is one anyway. It is true what you say, having two well developed characters fall in love is far more satisfying in the end than throwing them together. I hope you enjoyed the most recent chapter!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

"Why doesn't he just use one of the R2 units that are already built?" Ben asked with a frown. The youngest Solo was reclined on the couch in Breha's workshop, absentmindedly using the force to levitate objects in small circles in front of him. Breha sighed as she glanced up at Ben from the half built BB droid in front of her. It had been a month since she'd made the agreement with Poe. True to his word he'd been bringing her the parts she'd asked for, and true to her word when she had time she was working on the droid. _Time_ was something Breha found herself having more and more of over the past month. The pilots had taken to servicing their own fighters so now mechanics were only called in to consult or deal with major issues. In the same time period a few more mechanics had been recruited and had settled into Breha's team with ease.

"Because I'm building this BB unit for him." Breha replied to Ben. "You're starting to sound like L4," She glanced at the sulking R2 unit in the corner. When R2-L4 had first discovered that Breha was building a BB unit it hadn't reacted well. It was convinced that she was replacing it and whilst Breha had tried to convince L4 that that wasn't the case the droid didn't believe her. She had tried to explain that the BB unit was for someone else and that L4 was the perfect droid for her. R2-L4 still wasn't impressed and had taken to sulking in the corner of the workshop whenever Breha got the BB unit out to work on it.

"Your droid has a point." Ben motioned towards R2-L4 who beeped happily. "A new BB unit doesn't need to be built." He stressed the word 'need'. Breha exhaled heavily through her nose.

"Well it's been a while since I've been able to do something other than just what's needed." Bree admitted. The objects around Ben froze in mid-air as his dark eyes turned to his sister. His gaze softened as he recognised the joy Bree got from building the droid from scratch. She wasn't simply fulfilling the demand of a smooth talking pilot, it just so happened that what Poe Dameron wanted coincided with what Bree wanted. Ben felt a twinge in his gut and the softness left his gaze. There was once a time when Breha would spend her free time with him. Ben exhaled heavily through his nose and stood from the couch, his right hand making a sweeping motion as he returned the items to their rightful places.

"This is what you want to be doing in your spare time?" Ben asked quietly.

"Yeah Ben, it is." Bree agreed, palms being placed flat on the work surface as she stared at her work in front of her, not meeting Ben's gaze. Ben looked down at the unfinished droid, then back up to his sister. A rustling of fabric gave Bree cause to look up, just in time to see Ben collecting his jacket and making to exit the workshop. "Ben." Breha called after him but the black haired boy ignored her as he left the workshop in a few long strides. "Ben." She called louder as the door shut behind the boy.

"Hay, Ben." Poe greeted as he saw the dark haired boy walking towards him. "Is Breha in her workshop?" The smile left Poe's face quickly as he caught the shadowed look on the younger Solo's face. Ben completely ignored Poe as he stalked past the older man. A frown marred the pilot's face and he decided to quicken his pace to Breha's workshop. He opened the door and had to step back in order to avoid Breha who was trying to exit her workshop at the same time.

"Poe." She gasped in surprise. Breha's honey eyes darted from the left to the right of the corridor. She just glimpsed Ben as he disappeared around the corner.

"Planning on leaving the BB unit to the mercy of L4?" Poe asked. Bree's confused eyes snapped to meet his before she followed his gaze to see L4 threatening the unfinished BB unit with its electric pike.

"L4!" Breha shouted at the droid. Thoughts of Ben were pushed aside as she turned back into the workshop and stalked towards the R2 unit. Poe chuckled in amusement as he listened to Breha bicker with the droid. It was the same argument time and time again. The workshop door closed behind the pilot as he followed Breha into the room, and placed the crate of parts he'd been carrying onto the bench.

"The BB unit is for me L4." Poe tried to calm the rapidly beeping droid. His words did nothing to soothe it; the droid was still beeping high tones of concern that it was being replaced. From the corner of his eye he could see Breha getting more and more wound up, the flaring of her nostrils was a clear indicator.

"I'm not lying to you L4. You're not being replaced." Breha gesticulated wildly as she listened to the worked up droid. "Although if you keep this up you might be." She warned. L4 let out a high pitched squeal.

"Breha, that's not helping." Poe frowned. The young mechanic dismissed his input with a wave of her hand. Her honey eyes never left the R2 unit. She inhaled slowly and exhaled with control as she dropped to one knee in front of the droid.

"You know I was relying on you." Breha narrowed her eyes on the droid. L4 stilled at the change in Breha. It looked up at her owlishly with its black photoreceptor. "When this BB unit gets activated for the first time it's going to need an experienced droid around to show it the ropes." She motioned to the BB unit. "I thought I could count on the best droid to do that for me – but apparently not." She frowned at the R2 unit. L4 was silent for a moment before emitting a soft low tone. "Yes, really." Breha assured the droid. L4 was silent for another moment before beeping contently. The corner of Breha's mouth quirked upwards as the now calmed L4 seemed to believe it wasn't being replaced and agreed not to try to destroy the BB unit again.

"So how many times has my BB unit almost been dismantled?" Poe raised a brow. Breha looked up at the casually dressed pilot as she stood from her knelt position.

"Just as many times as I've prevented it." She answered with a smirk as she passed the pilot and clapped him on the shoulder.

"That doesn't reassure me a great deal you know." Poe placed his hands on his hips. He turned as Breha passed him, her hands diving straight into the crate of parts he brought her this time.

"Don't you trust me Poe?" She asked teasingly. Poe rolled his eyes at her back before walking around and standing on the opposite side of the workbench to her.

"Right now? Not a chance." He replied. Breha looked up from the rooting to meet Poe's gaze. Dark eyes were glinting with amusement and that damn rogue grin was threatening to pull at the corners of his mouth.

"Huh, maybe you are smarter than you look." Breha quipped easily. The rogue grin won out and claimed Poe's face.

He watched as Breha laid the parts that he had just brought out before selecting one and returning to work on the droid. Poe slowly sobered as he recalled the angered Ben he'd met on the way to her workshop.

"You're not going after your brother?" Poe asked quietly. Breha's movements stilled and her shoulders slumped.

"You saw him on your way here?" She asked. In her peripheral vision she could see Poe nod. The pilot waited patiently for Breha to speak again. She exhaled heavily through her nose. "There's no point going after him now."

"I thought that's where you were going when we almost collided in the doorway?" Poe asked. He leant forward on the work bench, arms crossed in front of him.

"It was." She agreed. Her eyes moved away from the BB unit to meet his. "But I won't see Ben until he wants to see me." She said. "Even if I was to look for him now, he'd sense me and have moved on before I found him." She explained, her eyes dropped back down to the droid. This wasn't the first time Breha and Ben had had a disagreement, they were siblings after all. She'd experienced Ben's active avoidance tactics before. As soon as Breha lost visual sight of her brother there was no way she was seeing him again until he wanted to see her. Poe blinked in surprise before quickly schooling his features. It was still strange for Poe to hear someone speak so casually of the force, even after being around Breha for over a month. There were times when he forgot the lineage of Breha, her brother and the General; the power and deep history that ran in their blood - the namesake they shared.

Dark eyes looked away from the hard set features of Breha's face and saw the tight clench of her fist around the droid part in her hand. The skin over her knuckles whitened as it was pulled tort, the tension was enough to cause her hand to shake ever so slightly. Poe uncrossed his arms and slowly wrapped his larger hand around Breha's. Her hand jumped beneath his, but she didn't pull away from his touch and slowly the tension seemed to ebb. Honey eyes rose to meet dark ones, she opened her mouth to speak, only to be cut off by Poe's communicator. It was the familiar voice of her mother's assistant calling for Poe to meet the General in the command centre. Poe's gaze was apologetic as he slowly pulled his hand away from Breha's, the warm tips of his fingers trailing along the back of her hand.

"Dameron here, on my way." He responded into the communicator. "I'm sorry Breha." Poe apologised to her.

"Go," Breha dismissed his apology.

"I'll stop by later." Poe promised her. Breha smiled softly and turned back to working on the droid. Poe had almost made it out of the workshop when he suddenly stopped and turned back to Breha. Dark eyes roamed her back for a second, from the lopsided messy bun on her head to her well-worn black boots. "Breha." The young mechanic turned just in time to catch a small object being thrown towards her. Her brow furrowed in confusion until she recognised what it was he had thrown to her and a laugh passed her lips – a Nubian pear. Poe winked at her, grinning happily, before turning and leaving the workshop. Breha returned to working on the BB unit but the smile refused to leave her lips.

Poe arrived at the command centre and we greeted warmly by the General. The pair then moved into the smaller side meeting room so that Poe could be briefed privately. Leia sat opposite Poe and slid a data pad over the table towards the younger pilot.

"What do you know of the Tessler Races?" Leia asked. Poe's dark eyes rose from the data pad and he regarded the General with curious eyes.

"High speed races through the Kauron asteroid field, typically controlled by the Cavrilhu Pirates." He replied. Poe was well aware of what the Tessler Races were. A pilot could become infamous just by completing the course; and for those who won the race – they're names were etched into history.

"We have received intelligence that the first order are using the races to disguise illegal arms trading as they attempt to build their forces." Leia explained. "Similar intelligence was brought to our attention four years ago but the operative we sent then was unable to uncover anything."

"You think they missed something?" Poe asked.

"Possibly," Leia conceded but from her tone Poe realised that Leia didn't believe the previous operative had missed anything. "The updated intel indicates that the first order are approaching pilots directly. The previous operative wasn't sent to the Races as a pilot." Leia added. Surprise washed over Poe at the Generals admission – just who did they send? "Due to the nature of this mission I'll offer you the same choice the previous operative had. You can either opt-in for this mission or you can decline. No judgement will be passed by me whichever you choose." Leia spoke seriously. The Tessler Races were notoriously high risk and posed a great deal of threat towards any pilot who entered them. It was unfair to order Poe to risk his life based on intelligence that wasn't completely sound. A mission like this wasn't the same as a squadron flying into combat.

"I'm committed to the Resistance General." Poe spoke firmly. "I'm going to the Tessler Races." Leia nodded in appreciation, she expected no other reply from the pilot in front of her – but she offered him the choice. A second data pad was slid over the table towards Poe. He glanced down at the second pad and saw the same mission but in much more detail.

"Then let's continue with the briefing." Leia said.

Breha was still working on the BB unit when her communicator sounded next to her. It seemed it was the young mechanics turn to get summoned to see the General. She quickly responded over the communicator and slipped her jacket on.

"Be nice." She pointed a warning finger at L4 on her way out of the workshop. It beeped back a promise not to destroy the BB unit.

Breha arrived at the command centre and was met by Tomas, her mother's assistant, who directed her to the side meeting room. Breha's eyebrows rose in surprise as she headed towards the room, knocking once before entering. Honey eyes shifted slowly between Leia and Poe who were still sat in the room.

"It's not often a mechanic gets called into a private mission briefing." Breha said as she took her seat. To anyone who wasn't familiar with Breha she looked perfectly relaxed. Yet both other occupants in the room could see through that, they could see the slight tension that coiled within her.

Leia inhaled slowly as she straightened her posture, readying herself for the reaction she knew was coming. She had seen the growing friendship between Poe and her daughter, which is why she knew Breha wasn't going to take her next words well. Leia only hoped that Breha kept calm enough so that she didn't have to punish her for insubordination.

"Breha, I need you to brief Poe on the controls of the Tessler racer over the next few days; run some drills through the planet's ring." Leia said clearly to Breha. Leia could see the progression of emotion pass through Breha. She was stunned first, her jaw falling slack behind closed lips. Fear hit the mechanic next, her honey eyes widening and her muscles running tort. But Breha wasn't one to stay stuck feeling afraid, so very quickly the wide fearful eyes narrowed with anger, her nostrils flaring. Poe watched Breha's profile concernedly, and fought the instinct to extend a hand out to comfort her.

"What?" Breha's tone was low and dangerous.

"You heard me perfectly clear Breha." Leia's lips were in a tight line as she stared her daughter down. Poe looked between them cautiously, they were two women he did not want to get caught between.

"No." Breha shook her head. Poe's eyes widened slightly. He'd seen Breha push the boundaries of insubordination before, but this was just pure defiance. "I'm not doing it." Leia inhaled slowly, exhaling with control before turning to Poe.

"Would you mind stepping outside for a moment Poe?" Leia asked. The pilot nodded and stood from his seat. Dark eyes gave Breha one more concerned glance before he exited the meeting room. Poe moved to the centre of the command centre and turned back around to face the meeting room; he could hear the muffle of a raised voice through the control door – Breha.

"I can't do it." Breha shook her head when the door shut behind Poe.

"Breha-"

"No!" The mechanic shouted over her mother, raising from her seat. The chair clattered to the ground behind her. "The Tessler Races are hell mother! And you want to send Poe there?" She yelled.

"I know this is hard for you Breha." Leia kept her voice soft.

"How?" Breha bellowed. Leia hadn't been to the Tessler races. "How could you possibly have any idea?"

"Because I was the one having to watch you leave for that barbaric place four years ago." Leia said firmly. The anger seemed to deflate from Breha in one long breath as she stared wide eyed at her mother. Leia stood slowly from her seat and walked around the table until she was in front of her daughter. Soft hands moved the loose curls that had fallen out in anger away from Breha's face before she gently cup her face. "I know how hard it is to watch someone leave." Leia said gently. "Especially, when they're leaving to go and do something stupid and dangerous." Leia's heart ached as Breha's eyes grew glassy. "And I know that it's harder still to help them prepare for it."

"Send me." Breha asked, her voice small. "Send me instead of Poe."

"Oh Breha." Leia smiled sadly at her daughter and pulled how into a tight hug. "It has to be Poe."

"How am I supposed to help him when I don't want him to go?" Breha asked almost brokenly.

"Because you're his friend. And he needs you." Leia said simply. Breha's breath hitched in her throat and the cold realisation that Poe was going to that place hit her. He was such a good man who'd done so much for her and she was helping send him to hell; she cursed herself for that. And then she cursed herself again for growing close enough to him to care.

"I hate this." Breha growled as she pulled away from her mother.

"I know." Leia said. There was a pause of silence between the women. "You understand that I have to punish you." Leia sighed. Breha nodded knowing full well she wouldn't get away with a display of insubordination like that.

Poe grew more nervous when the sound of muffled shouting stopped and he was left staring at the door. Those nerves increased when Iivan, Breha's fellow mechanic arrived at the command centre with a large security man. Iivan's eyes met Poe's and he walked over to the pilot.

"What's happening?" Iivan asked.

"That's what I was going to ask you." Poe frowned. "Breha's in there with the General."

"Not again." Iivan sighed. Before Poe could question the mechanic the doors to the meeting room opened and Breha stepped out, followed by Leia. Breha made a bee-line straight for Iivan. Poe looked over her shoulder and saw Leia speaking to the security man.

"Here are the controls for lead mechanic and any jobs I have pending." Breha announced as she handed Iivan a data pad handing over her job to him.

"How long for?" He asked.

"24 hours." Breha replied. Her honey eyes then turned to Poe. "Meet me tomorrow evening, 17:00, by hanger 9." She said unhappily. As she turned to leave Poe reached out and grabbed her wrist. Dark eyes glanced to the security man over her shoulder before looking back at the young woman.

"Breha, what's happening?" He asked.

"No special treatment remember." She forced a small smile. Poe let go of her wrist when she pulled away and joined the security man. He watched on in concern, until he realised that Breha seemed to know the security man and the two were deep in conversation by the time they left the command centre.

"You don't need to worry about her Poe." Leia said quietly as she passed by her commander.

…

 **To ShigureAyameHatoriFanClub: I too love BB8 and I'm really looking forwards to writing his character in this fic :D The idea of Poe failing at shopping is hilarious! I might even end up writing a spin-off one-shot about it haha! Thank you for your review**

 **To Willa: Ah! So much praise! Thank you so much :D I'm constantly trying to improve my writing style so to hear that you like how I write is great praise indeed. Also pleased to hear that you like my character and portrayal of canon characters! And of course I am relieved to hear you like Poe and Bree together! Hope you enjoy the rest of the fic!**

 **To heroherondaletotherescue: I was so excited to see the notification that you'd reviewed! I have to admit Poe/Breha scenes are one of the parts of the fic I enjoy writing the most. She is definitely starting to relax a little bit more, and lower her shields a little bit. Thank you for your support and I hope you continue to enjoy the fic.**

 **To NicoleR85: Thank you for another review! Your continued support really helps motivate me and encourages me with this fic.**

 **To JunJunyil: Awww! I'm so pleased I could make you're morning (I hope this chapter was good for you as well) and I woke up to your review waiting for me on my phone so that was a great way for me to start my day!**

 **To Midnight-flames: Thank you for your review! It's really nice to hear that I have a dedicated reader :D Hope you enjoyed the chapter!**

 **To EstellaCrane: Thank you! Possibly some of the best praise I've received! And I'm glad you like the idea of Breha making BB-8 for Poe. To let you in on a secret a mechanic making BB-8 for Poe was the very first thought I had for Namesake and the rest of the plot was developed from there. There's a line in TFA where Poe claims that BB-8 is "one of a kind" and I was sat in the theatre thinking 'It's because someone dear to him made of for him' and plot/character ideas for Namesake grew from there :D I hope you enjoyed chapter 8!**

 **To InfinityMars: There really does need to be more Poe/OC stories! And thank you for your praise! I'm glad that you love their playful banter, it's some of my favourite dialogue to write :D It's lovely to hear that you think I write Poe well; I would hate to portray such an incredible character badly. Hope you enjoyed the latest instalment.**

 **To .bleue: (I'm hoping your name reads write because in the last chapter a pen name with full stops in it was partially deleted when the document was uploaded – apologies if that has happened) Thank you for your review!**

 **To sarahmichellegellarfan1: Thank you for another review! I don't think I can explain how encouraging it is to have a regular reviewer and supporter of the story! So thank you :)**

 **NB – To .fire (feelthatfire with no '.' Incase it cut if off again) I want to apologise for how your pen name is spelt at the end of chapter 7. Something happened when I uploaded the word document and it cut off the end of your name – sorry about that. :(**


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

Leia's eyes glanced at the clock by the side of her bed – 03:47 – before returning to staring at the ceiling. She knew she wasn't going to get to sleep tonight. Her mind was too distracted by the pulses of angst, anger and pain that originated from her daughter. The General tried to close her eyes but all she could see was Breha pacing backwards and forwards, hands tangled in her mess of black curls. Leia knew the punishment she dealt to Breha was harsher than it needed to be. Her daughter's offense warranted nothing more than a strong verbal scolding; she didn't deserve to currently be looked in a spare sleeping quarters for 24 hours. But from the moment Breha asked Leia if she could go instead of Poe, Leia had to ensure that Breha was safe for the night. Her daughter was far too much like her father for her own good. She was impulsive, just like he was, and Leia wouldn't put it past her daughter to make a stupid snap decision and abscond to the Tessler races alone and unprepared to save her friend from going. So Leia had used the excuse of her acting out to throw the book at her and give her daughter the time and space she needed to calm down.

24 hours confined to a basic sleeping quarters didn't do Breha any good. Most of the time she was pacing the small space like an agitated animal. Sleep hadn't been easy for her either, her mind was restless with thoughts of Poe and the Tessler Races. There were times when she stared at the door, begging it to open so she could head to the hanger, take a ship and save Poe the torment of the Tessler races. But the door never opened and she found herself stuck on D'Qar. The longer she was stuck in the room the more Breha relinquished the idea of stealing a ship.

In the morning when she heard the door being unlocked her heart sored with relief. The young mechanic was on her feet and waiting at the door for it to open in a matter of seconds. The door finally opened, but the sight of who was waiting for her outside glued her feet to the floor in surprise.

"Ben." She breathed out. The younger Solo was stood facing the door, arms crossed over his chest.

"I felt your distress all night." Ben frowned at his sister. Honey eyes roamed over her brother's face and she could see the tell-tale signs of fatigue. The underneath of his eyes were slightly puffy and his hair hung limper around his face.

"Sorry," She apologised as her eyes fell to the floor. Ben ran his eyes up and down his sister carefully, she didn't look like she'd slept any better than he had. A sigh from between his lips caused her to look up at him.

"It's okay Breha." He forced a small smile to his face.

"No, it's not." She said simply. "But you're kind enough to pretend it is." She added as she finally stepped towards her brother. The door to the sleeping quarters hissed shut behind her. "It's also not okay that I upset you yesterday." She added. Ben shifted his weight on his feet.

"You didn't upset me." He brushed it off.

"If you lie to me I can't help," Breha said as she tilted her head to catch her brother's gaze. Ben's dark eyes met her honey ones as she could see the ache behind his gaze. She could see he was torn whether to tell her.

"I just feel like I'm losing my family." Ben admitted quietly. "We haven't seen dad in 4 years, mum is always so busy and then you-" He stopped himself and looked back down at the floor.

"-and then I've been ignoring you as well." Breha finished for him. Ben nodded but didn't raise his gaze from the floor. Guilt wracked through Breha and she was sure Ben could feel it. So when she pulled him into an apologetic hug the youngest Solo could feel the sincerity behind her actions. "It won't happen again Ben. I promise." She mumbled into the black curls on his head. The boy was growing quickly, he was almost the same height as her now. "I will always be there for you."

At 17:00 that evening Poe turned the corner of the corridor and the doors to Hanger 9 came into sight. Breha looked up at the sound of approaching footfalls and tried to muster a small smile for Poe. Her mind was obsessing too much over what they were about to do for the smile to appear anything other than forced.

"How was your night in solitude?" Poe asked as he reached her.

"Quiet." Breha replied bluntly. Poe was looking over her shoulder into the hanger. "Come on, we're not going in there." She motioned with her head further down the corridor.

"Then why meet there?" Poe asked as he fell into step next to her.

"Not everyone knows the place we're going to exists." She replied. Poe raised a brow as he looked down at the mechanic next to him, his curiosity peaked. A sharp turned down a corridor and the pair found themselves outside of a thick, coded-entry hanger door.

"What's behind the doors?" Poe asked grinning like a child expecting a grand present. Breha glanced up at Poe from her position in front of the keypad. Poe tried not to be put off by the lack of the usual playful glint in Breha's eyes.

"The Storage unit." She replied as she punched in a long sequence into the pad. The door hissed open and Poe's lips parted in surprise. The storage unit was a large hanger – larger than any the X-wings were stored in - filled with a various assortment of vessels. For the most part the ships were designs that were unidentifiable with the resistance, and some were even unidentifiable with the republic itself. Although there were a couple of T-70s that Poe spotted. "You can stop drooling now." Breha rolled her eyes as she slipped by the side of Poe and entered the hanger. She entered the hanger and walked through the collection of ships with a familiar ease, heading straight down the middle. Poe decided to take his time before following after Breha, appreciating the ships around him. He found it hard to tear his eyes away from admiring a set of three well-kept Z-95 headhunters. "Poe!" Breha's voice echoed from further down the hanger. Poe eventually managed to tear himself away from admiring the Z-95s and followed the sound of Breha's voice.

Poe followed the noise and stopped in surprise as he reached a Corellian VCX-100 light freighter. The ship had otherwise been hidden by large hanger partition slides. Although it wasn't the ship that surprised him. It was Breha as she exited the ship. Poe had seen how comfortable Breha looked in her workshop building his BB unit. But that was nothing compared to how at home she was right in that moment. Completely void of any mechanic attire, wearing simply a pair of black trousers and a grey fitted top, she looked at home with the freighter. Her honey eyes met his darker ones and he felt an all too familiar twinge in his gut. He swallowed thickly as she walked towards him, forcing himself to take a few strides to meet her half way.

"There are some occasions when the resistance needs to not look like the resistance." Breha began. "So over the years we've acquired vessels that aren't the iconic X-wing series."

"It's an impressive collection." Poe admitted. Breha made an absentminded hum sound.

"Enough about the storage unit though. We're here to prepare you for Tessler." Breha said and was unable to keep the distaste from her voice. Poe down at Breha and was unnerved to see her looking him up and down as if he was a piece of machinery. "Don't shave for the next couple of days." She ordered bluntly. Poe furrowed his brow. "You look too Republic. You need to look more like smuggler." His brow only partially relaxed as he tried to work out if she'd just insulted him or not. "How are you at lying?" Breha asked next.

"I can lie perfectly fine." Poe replied.

"For the love of- You can't even lie about being able to lie." She pinched the bridge of her nose. "Why the hell were you chosen for this?" She mumbled under her breath. Poe's jaw tightened as he heard her.

"Breha." He said lowly. Honey eyes snapped to meet his. "When you're done analysing my facial hair status and chances at gambling, why don't you tell me about the Tessler racer I'm going to be flying?" Breha let out a huff of air and had to repeat her mother's words in her head to calm herself down. Poe needed her to do this.

"Poe meet the _Nexus_ ," She motioned to the Corellian VCX-100 behind her.

"This is the ship I'm racing in the Tessler Races?" Poe asked sceptically. He'd expected something smaller and more acrobatic than the lightweight freighter.

"You're going undercover as a smuggler Poe, you kind of need a ship large enough to smuggle things." Breha shook her head in disbelief. The more Poe spoke the less she wanted him to go. Poe's eyes narrowed on Breha. The more she spoke the more she bristled him the wrong way. "You're racer is this way." Breha motioned with her head to follow him as she walked away from the _Nexus_ and towards the outside hanger doors.

Poe had to shield his eyes against the glare of the sun as the pair stepped outside. His eyes slowly adjusted and as he lowered his arm two vessels came into sight, waiting patiently for them on the tarmac. On the left stood the familiar shape of an X-Wing T-70. But it wasn't a T-70 that he recognised as belonging to one of the other pilots. Sat next to the T-70 was a vessel that Poe didn't recognise from a distance. It was only as they got close enough that he realised it was a drastically modified Z-95 Headhunter.

"This is what you'll be flying in the races." She explained. Her hand motioned to the Z-95. "Weapons have been removed and the shielding stripped to a bare minimum to save the weight to fuel ratio and a new engine has been refitted." She briefed as Poe moved around the ship. Poe's eyes glanced up at her. She stood, frowning as she explained the ship. The pilot would have found it comical if her behaviour wasn't so annoying. "It makes it feel like you're flying something flimsy."

"Why don't we just take her up and let me see?" Poe asked with a forced sweetness to his voice. Breha's eyes narrowed but she nodded her agreement and headed towards the T-70.

Breha was breathing heavily with frustration as she stalked over to the T-70, easily scaling the ladder to climb into the cock-pit, pulling the hatch closed over her head. Angry fingers snapped at the controls as she started the ignition sequence. Glancing up she saw Poe doing the same in the Z-95.

"After you Dameron," She called over the communication link between the T-70 and the Z-95. Poe rolled his eyes but continued to fire up the Z-95. The smaller headhunter rose from the ground in a low hover. "Word of warning, she's quick off of the mark" Breha spoke as Poe cleared her X-wing.

"I think I can handle it." Poe grumbled back. He wondered if she was this frustrating with every pilot she briefed or if Poe was getting a special treatment. Either way he was going to blow up at her soon if she didn't stop.

"You're aware the comm link in an open one?" Breha raised at brow at the pilot's retort.

"Yes I am." Poe punctuated each word as he gripped the throttle of the Z-95 and pulled back. Breha's frown quickly turned into a smirk as she heard the surprised grunt from Poe as the Z-95 took off.

"Told you so." Breha said simply as she initiated the final controls of the T-70 and rose smoothly from the ground. She met up with Poe again once the pair were both out of D'Qar's atmosphere and cruising towards the ring that surrounded the planet. Breha had a front row seat as Poe demonstrated his acrobatic flying skills in the Z-95.

The Z-95 had been terrifying for the first few moments of flight as it responded to even the slightest movement from Poe and launched rapidly out of the atmosphere. Breha had been right in saying the vessel felt flimsy, like there was no protection, but Poe had never loved anything more. His natural ability to pilot let him adjust to the sensitive controls quickly and he found himself experimenting with the handling of the racer. Poe was finding it hard to fight the smile on his face. He had flown Z-95s before, but this was a whole other beast.

"Having fun Poe?" Breha asked with a raised brow as Poe barrel rolled his vessel over the top of her T-70.

"Not in the slightest." He lied but the grin had claimed his face.

"You're a terrible liar Poe, we've established this." Breha shook her head. "So are you going to fly through those rocks or are you going to mess around all day?" Poe sighed and grit his teeth to refrain from snapping at Breha.

"Rocks it is." Poe levelled the Z-95 and set off towards the ring of the planet.

"So if you start off slow and then gradually take the-." Breha lectured over the comm.

"Last time I checked there was one pilot seat in the Z-95. No space for a backseat driver." Poe quipped back at Breha. Breha cocked her head to the side and ran her tongue over her bottom lip in agitation. Poe set off into the planet's ring and began the drills Breha ordered across to him. The tension slowly grew between the pair until their cock-pits were almost unable to contain the frustration. By the time they set their vessels back down on the tarmac Breha's hands were gripping the controls of the T-70 so tightly her skin had turned white over her knuckles.

Poe stood next to the Z-95 as he watched Breha jump down from the T-70. He waited for her to turn around and look at him. No matter how bossy she'd been up there, she had to have been impressed with how he flew. It wasn't egotistical for Poe to say he flew excellently, it was a fact – it was the one thing he was good at. She had to recognise that. Breha turned and looked over at him, shaking her head and looking to the ground. Poe's jaw dropped. She was disappointed?

"Breha!" Poe bellowed. His temper finally blew as she turned to walk away from him. The young mechanic froze at the shout, her shoulders tensing defensively. She slowly turned around to see Poe stalking towards her angrily. "You've been on my ass all day. What the hell is up with you?"

"You're not good enough Poe." Breha's voice was low. Poe's eyes narrowed at her words.

"I flew every drill you set up there flawlessly and you know it." He growled. Breha shook her head.

"Tomorrow 07:00 we're running them again." She declared turning on her heel and walking away. She got as far as one step.

"What the hell is your problem Breha?" Poe exclaimed, raising his arms wildly. Breha whipped back around to see the angriest version of Poe she'd ever seen. "I can fly through an asteroid field." Poe yelled. "I'm the best pilot in the Galaxy."

"I don't care how good you think you are." Breha narrowed her eyes. "You need to practise in the racer. You're not ready."

"Why do you doubt me so much?" Poe narrowed his stare, leaning slightly towards Breha. "You've seen me fly the racer perfectly. You know I'm the best pilot you've seen. So why do you still doubt me?" Poe's gaze remained harsh as he watched anger flicker dangerously in Breha's eyes.

"You're not ready for Tessler, Poe." She repeated her words snapping angrily.

"Bullshit." Poe called. "This isn't about how I fly. You have a problem with me." He leant in closer still. "Do you blame me for your punishment last night? Is that what this is?" He asked incredulously. Breha could feel her chest tightening as he leant in closer and thoughts fired through her mind without care. "Why am I suddenly such an issue for you?" He yelled.

"I don't want you to go." Breha yelled in response. All the rage dropped from Poe's expression as he stared at her in bewilderment. His dark eyes found hers and being this close to her he could see the fear she held in her honey eyes. Her eyes ran across his face, taking in every detail until she found his eyes again. Fear was consumed by pain and Breha struggled to formulate words. Her mouth opened and closed with no sound being made.

"You don't?" Poe asked his voice suddenly hoarse. Almost as if he was choking on the emotion he saw in Breha's eyes.

"Of course I don't Poe." Breha's voice was soft again. "The Tessler Races are brutal; they destroy people." Her voice was quiet, almost pleading with him when she finally managed to make a sound. Poe studied her face, watching her as she spoke of the races and a cold realisation washed over him.

"You're the operative they sent four years ago." He stared at her wide eyed. She didn't verbally confirm his statement, but Poe could tell by her reaction that he was right. He suddenly felt disgusted. Four years ago Breha would have been in her mid-teens – still a kid. "You were so young."

"I was a part of the resistance. They needed a mechanic to go - I volunteered." Breha explained simply but Poe had never seen her eyes look so sad. Her eyes closed, brow furrowed and a look of shame that Poe wasn't expecting passed over Breha's face. "And they aren't even the reasons I went." She admitted. "I was being selfish. I thought I could find my father there." Poe raised a warm hand to cup the side of her jaw, long fingers splaying along her jaw bone and neck. She leant towards his touch and opened her eyes.

"Breha." Poe whispered her name. A bitter smile pulled at her lips.

"Now you understand why I don't want you to go." She replied. Poe's brow creased. He was in pain at the thought that Breha had been at the Tessler races four years ago; if what she was feeling was anything like that he wasn't sure he knew how she was holding herself together. Her smaller hand rose and partially covered the hand he had on her cheek, partially holding his wrist. "I've seen more pilots die during the races than I have pilots make it across the finish line." Poe's gaze softened at her admission. One went around her shoulders and the other held the back of her head to his chest. Breha inhaled deeply as she embraced the warmth and comfort of Poe. She could hear his firm heart beat through his jumpsuit and placed her hand on his chest over his heart.

"I'll finish the race." He promised. His mouth was pressed the top of her head, her soft black curls tickling his cheek. "I'll come back." Her grip on his shirt tightened at his promise.

…

 **To the Guest from the 5** **th** **Feb** **: Thank you for your review and I'm soooo happy you like the idea of the Tessler Races… I'm always a bit apprehensive when I introduce new concepts away from the canon so I'm glad it's gone down well with you.**

 **To ShigureAyameHatoriFanClub** **: yeah… Leia was definitely a 'Bad cop' parent in the last chapter. I hope this chapter has helped elaborate why she acted the way she did? I think Leia more than anyone understands what Breha is struggling through and is just trying to help guide Bree through this as best she can - but like everyone even Leia makes mistakes and perhaps doesn't always deal with things the best way. And you'll be happy to see Ben! I enjou writing Breha/Ben too much to send him away 8 chapters in :D**

 **To MichelleJoy** **: Thank you for your review! So glad to hear that you're enjoying the story so far.**

 **To heroherondaletotherescue** **: Glad you appreciated the plot twist! I have to admit I'm having great fun writing this section of the fic :D and it wasn't the best day for Bree – she's not having a lot of those actually. But I am glad that you're enjoying the story!**

 **To JunJunyil** **: Wow! I think my ego just exceeded the size of the room! That it massive praise! There are some incredible PoeXSolo's kids fanfics out there. I'm so glad you're excited for the Tessler Races! I've had so much fun developing the concept of them so I can't wait for you guys to read about it! And I hope to keep surprising you!**

 **To Deserah** **: It's really good to hear you're enjoying the fic and that you find Breha well-rounded. It's so easy to slip into Mary-sue territory with universes like Star Wars. I've deleted whole chapters before after re-reading them and realising I've turned her into a Mary-Sue. And a VERY big thank you for complimenting my writing style and plot!**

 **To engineerwenlock** **: A big thank you for your multiple reviews! It's lovely to hear that you like Breha :D and incredible to hear that you think I portray the Star Wars universe well :D**

 **To the Guest who reviewed on the 6** **th** **Feb** **: Thank you so much for your review! It was the extra boost of encouragement I needed! :D**


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

After some subtle snooping in the command centre with the help of L4; Breha discovered she had three days with Poe. Which her gut told her was too short a time to prepare the pilot for what he was going to encounter at Tessler. So she made the decision on the eve of the final night to pack a go-bag and be ready to leave.

A knock at the door to her quarters made her freeze, a food portion in her hand as she was in the process of putting it in her bag. Honey eyes eyed the door wearily before she moved quickly to hide any evidence of what she was planning; especially making sure to hide her pair of DC-17 hand blasters. Whist the weapons were relics of the clone war Breha had saved them from the junk heap and rebuilt the blasters almost entirely from scratch. After a final scan of the room to make sure she hadn't missed anything she opened the door to her quarters.

"Breha." Poe greeted. Dark eyes dropped down before he could help it, his peripheral vision had caught the sight of the exposed skin of her legs. She was dressed only in a pair of shorts and a vest top. Whilst the shorts were still quite moderate on her, nothing overly baring, it was the first time Poe had seen her long, toned legs.

"Poe." Breha greeted. His eyes jumped back up to meet hers and he cleared his throated.

"Do you mind if I come in?" he asked, motioning towards her room. She shook her head and retreated into her room, leaving Poe to follow her. The door closed behind Poe and he suddenly found it very hard to speak – unsure of how to tell her. He decided to be blunt "I leave tomorrow morning." He watched as Breha froze, her back still to him. Honey eyes stared hard at the floor.

"You shouldn't have told me that Poe." She said quietly. Breha slowly turned to face the pilot.

"I know." Poe agreed. "But-" Poe suddenly cut himself short, his face quickly morphing into an expression of suspicion. His dark eyes roamed her face; he'd honestly expected her to get angry at their lack of time. Breha held her nerve against his change in demeanour and retained her straight face. Dark eyes glanced around the room until they fixed on a cupboard in the corner, the door open a sliver.

"Poe." Breha stepped forward to stop him as he moved quickly to the cupboard and pulled open the door. A sigh left her lips in defeat as Poe found her go-bag. He picked it up, quickly scanning its contents to confirm his suspicions, before throwing it to the floor in anger. Dark eyes rounded on Breha.

"Tell me you weren't going to stowaway on the _Nexus_." He said lowly. Breha remained silent; she couldn't lie to him. "Breha!" His hand fisted his hair in frustration. She had to be the more infuriating woman he'd ever met. "Do you really think I'm that incapable?" Poe asked. From the beginning she'd been against him going on this mission; and now when that wasn't an option she was trying to force herself onto it. A small hand gently curled around his and pulled it away from his head. He stared down at her with large dark eyes.

"I think you're very capable Poe." She said. Her hand smoothed down the hair he'd ruffled in his frustration. "But my instinct is screaming at me not to let you go alone. I can't ignore my instinct."

"I need you to ignore it." Poe urged her.

"Poe I…"

"Breha." He soothed. He could see her jaw clench.

"I'm scared though." She admitted, ashamed. Poe smiled sadly down at her.

"You think I'm not?" Poe asked. Truthfully, the pilot was just as fearful for what lay ahead of him as Breha. "I'd be a fool not to be."

"So let me come with you." Breha said as it was obvious.

"I can't take you with me." He shook his head. Breha exhaled like she'd been punched in the gut and turned away from Poe. Her shoulders were raised with a tension that ran down the entirety of her back. Her hands curled into fists. She hated this. It was like she wasn't able to do anything to help.

"Breha." Poe said lowly. He knew all too well what she was experiencing. Breha was a leader by nature; she was used to being in control. Sitting on the side lines and relinquishing control to someone else wasn't a notion that was familiar or comfortable with. Poe sighed. Maybe it was selfish of him to wish for Breha to stay behind, but that was the only way he could do this. "What kept you focussed on making it back when you were at Tessler?" Poe asked. He already knew the answer and by the way Breha's shoulders suddenly lost all tension, so did she.

"My family." She said quietly. It had been the desire to see her father that had lured Breha to Tessler; but it had been thoughts of Ben and her mother that had brought her back.

"I need you here Breha." Poe admitted. Breha slowly turned around to face him. "I need you to come back to." He wasn't sure when it had happened but the maddening woman had embedded herself like a tick in his heart. Poe smiled sadly. "Will you come to see me off tomorrow?" he asked. His question was like a cold hand gripping her chest and squeezing tightly.

"I'll be there Poe." She replied reluctantly. Breha stood in her room as she watched him leave. As the door shut behind him she found herself rooted to the spot, even as a tear tracked down her cheek, she was rooted there.

All too quickly and she found herself stood out on the tarmac, staring at the Nexus. Her eyes drifted from the Nexus to Poe who was speaking to her mother a few feet away. She inhaled slowly and looked back at the freighter. If only these seconds would last longer.

She heard footfalls approaching her over the light whistle of wind and had to steel herself to turn to look at him. Poe was walking towards her; his typical jumpsuit had been replaced with more casual clothes, including the brown leather jacket she loved on him. He stopped in front of her. Honey eyes trailed over his face, trying to savour every detail.

"You didn't shave." She said quietly. A thick layer of stubble now lined the pilot's lower face. That coupled with the blaster hanging from his black belt completed his disguise; he looked so much more rugged and unpolished.

"Someone told me I looked too pretty when I was clean-cut." He grinned down at her with that infectious rogue grin of his.

"That's not what I said." Breha shook her head in amusement.

"Close enough I think." Poe shrugged teasingly. Breha shared his smile for a moment but the pair quickly sobered – smiles fading from their faces.

"Come back Poe." She wished simply. He smiled sadly down at her and welcomed her embrace when she wrapped her arms around his neck. His large arms wrapped around her ribs and held her tightly against him.

"I will Breha." He whispered the promise, his mouth next to her ear. The young mechanic shivered in his hold before pulling away slightly, her lips drawing a line against his skin from his ear to his cheek as if heading towards his mouth.

"Be safe Poe." She whispered, lips pressed against his cheek. She held him for a moment longer before regretfully pulling away. Her hands trailed from the back of his neck, over his shoulders and pressed flat against his chest. Fierce eyes met his gaze and Poe felt stronger in himself just by the way she was looking at him. Her hands finally fell from his chest and she stepped away from him.

It felt like her internal organs were slowing disappearing from her, leaving nothing but an empty, hollow shell as she watched the Nexus ignite. Her breath kept catching in her throat as the freighter rose from the ground and into the sky until she could no longer see it.

"Would you like to talk?" Leia asked quietly. She had waited away from Breha as her daughter said her goodbye to Poe. It was obvious to Leia that the pair were close and it felt wrong to intrude on their quite personal farewell. Breha paused for a second before looking at her mother with a soft smile.

"No, I'm good." She assured her. "I need to go fix something." Breha decided as she turned away from her mother. "Or blow something up." She added thoughtfully more to herself than her mother. Leia smiled at her daughter's retreating back. Organa women were a strong breed. Leia only had to think of her adoptive mother to find another strong Organa woman. She had been the 'Breha' that her daughter had been named after. And as Leia watched her daughter walk back to the base, her head held high it seemed fitting that Breha was her namesake.

The young mechanic was a few metres from the hanger doors when her communicator sounded. She pulled the device from her belt and furrowed her brow in confusion, the signal for the transmission was extremely weak.

"Missing me yet?" The teasing voice of Poe Dameron was faint and crackly over the poor connection. It would be a matter of seconds before the signal was lost entirely.

"I'm enjoying the peace." She teased but failed to keep all of the sadness from her voice. The line crackled once more as Poe tried to speak but it was cut off and silence was all that was emitted from the small device. A faint smile pulled at her lips as she continued on her way inside, thoughts of Poe occupying her mind.

Breha made it back to her workshop and upon spying the unfinished BB unit on the bench she decided that she needed to build something rather than blow it apart. She supposed the General would be happier for that decision. She spent a few hours working on the droid in a much needed silence, save for the occasional peeps from L4, before she got called away to one of the hangers to see a problematic T-70. The X wing proved to be a good distraction for Breha. With her mind focussed on the weapons system of a fighter it gave very little room for her thoughts to dwell on Poe.

She finished working on the fighter and thoughts of X-wing mechanics were replaced with thoughts of Poe Dameron – yet again. He'd be at the races by now. She bit her lip and tried to force herself not to think off all of the worst case scenarios. She'd had the unfortunate opportunity to witness what happened at the races to new faces the pirates didn't like. Breha desperately hoped they at least tolerated Poe. A hand swept up and over her forehead into her hair, brushing back the loose curls. These thoughts were going to drive her insane if she wasn't careful.

Ben was reading in the peace of his bedroom when a knock at the door disrupted him. The door opened and he wasn't surprised to see Bree stood on the opposite side. He had felt her emotions fluctuating wildly all day. Without a word she threw a practise lightsaber which he caught with ease. Ben then spied the practise saber she had in her own hand.

"Fancy beating the crap out of me for a bit?" Breha asked, head cocked to the side. Ben blinked at her in surprise before a smirk claimed his face. His data pad was quickly abandoned on his bed.

"Since you asked so nicely." He smirked.

The siblings made their way to the secluded practise area and quickly engaged in combat. Ben watched as Breha paced a couple of steps one way then back again like an agitated animal.

"Where's your head at Bree?" Ben asked, his brow was furrowed with concern. Breha stopped her pacing and looked to Ben with an obvious ache behind her eyes.

"A friend of mine is doing something dangerous and there's nothing I can do but sit and wait for them." Breha explained. "I can't do anything and it's maddening." She hissed through gritted teeth. There weren't many times Ben had seen Breha this distressed; the last time he could recall was after their father had left. That was four years ago and Ben had been too young and weak in the force to do anything to help her – that wasn't the case now.

"I can help Bree," Ben said softly. He'd slowly moved forward so that he was standing in front of Breha and being this close to her he could see clearly into her honey eyes. His chest ached at the sight of her; it looked like she was being torn apart from the inside out. She nodded and closed her eyes, trying desperately to push thoughts of Poe and memories of her time at the Tessler Races to the back of her mind. "That won't help Breha. You can't just push those memories aside. I know they hurt. I can feel it. But they're a part of you." Ben said quietly. Breha swallowed thickly as she accepted Ben's presence and let him lead her through her own mind.

Breha exhaled in relief as she let her mind sink into the still and pure corner of her mind. Ben retreated from his sister mind, lowering his right palm from hovering above her temple. A smile pulled at his lips as he observed the positive change in Breha's demeanour.

"Thank you Ben." She said softly. Ben nodded as a way to say 'you're welcome' and rotated the practise saber once beside him. Breha eyed the flash of movement and smirked as she remembered why the pair were there in the first place. Her right leg swept around and tried to trip her brother. Ben jumped and rotated once in the air to dodge, he landed softly on his feet a few metres away. His feet had barely touched the floor and Ben was sprinting back towards Breha. The pair engaged in combat and for any onlooker the display of strength and acrobatics was something to behold.

As the fight went on Breha sank deeper and deeper into the still part of her mind, letting go of everything that was outside of the moment. The pair locked up once more with their practise sabers crossed in front of them, holding each other in place. Neither Ben nor Breha could explain it. This fight wasn't like the other training sessions they'd had. Neither Solo sibling was distracted by anything other than the moment they were sharing in combat. In this moment the pair felt the others presence in a way they never had before. They knew the other in a way they never had before. Honey eyes met Ben's dark ones and Breha exhaled slowly as she realised Ben felt it too. Ben could see the caution in Breha's eyes. She wasn't as strong in the force as he was and he could tell the unfamiliarity of what she was feeling was unnerving her.

"This is what focus feels like Bree." Ben said softly. Ben watched carefully as the caution seemed to fade from her eyes. She inhaled deeply.

"It feels good." She replied causing Ben to smile.

The sun had set hours ago, and most of the personnel on the base in their quarters either sleeping or getting ready to go to sleep. Yet Breha found herself reluctant to return to her own quarters and instead found herself walking the corridors. The young mechanic arrived outside of a familiar set of doors and raised her arm to knock on the door. The movement highlighted the ache of her muscles and she was sure there were bruises already blooming on her back and thighs. The door opened and Breha saw her mother stood in a long dark purple night gown and lighter robe.

"I think I want to talk now." Breha said simply. Leia's brown eyes softened and she welcomed her daughter into her room. There were two chairs in the corner of the room, with a low table next to them. Breha wasn't surprised to see two steaming cups of tea waiting on the table – her mother must have sensed her coming. The two women sat in silence for a moment: Leia patiently waited for Breha as the younger woman struggled to find how to articulate herself. "Has he contacted base?" she finally asked. Leia pursed her lips for a moment as she debated whether or not to tell Bree. She watched as her daughter stared intently into the cup of tea she was cradling in her hands.

"He has sent the assigned code for a safe infiltration and go ahead for the mission." Leia said. Relief washed over Breha and a lot of the tension she had been carrying seemed to leave her as she exhaled. Poe was still in a highly dangerous place but he hadn't been shot down on sight – that boded well for the pilot.

"My instinct is still telling me to go after him." Breha admitted. Leia sighed.

"Is it your instinct or your fear?" She asked. Breha's honey eyes shot to her mother, anger flaring quickly. But one look at Leia she wasn't trying to upset her. Breha sighed.

"Honestly, I don't know." The young woman placed her tea on the table and leant forward, elbows on her knees and head in her hands. "I worry for him mum." Breha admitted. "All I can think of are all of the terrible things that could happen to him."

"Do you trust him Breha?" Leia asked. Her daughter didn't look up. "Do you trust Poe Dameron?"

"I do." Breha finally managed, taking her head out of her hands.

"Then trust that he will be okay." Leia said simply.

…

 **To JunJunyil: Gah! Thank you so much! It's so good to hear that you're loving the Tessler Races :D Not much more about them in this chapter BUT author's promise there will be more on the races soon!**

 **To NicoleR85: Happy to hear that you're liking the chapters! I hope you continue to enjoy them**

 **To KeepingThemAtBay: Soooo good to hear that you think Bree's emotions are helping this fic. The last chapter, this chapter and the next few chapters in fact have been really hard to write. Bree's emotions are all over the place which is hard to portray accurately. And Bree is still on D'Qar… for now. :D**

 **To feelthatfire: Figured I'd drop the '.' And get most of your pen name :D It's great to hear you're intrigued by the races! They're still a bit of a mystery at the moment, but author's promise they won't stay that way :D Yes! Thank you! It's been a challenge trying to balance Leia and Han in Breha whilst still making her Breha so I'm sooo happy that that is coming across well. And I love Ben's appearance as well. I know exactly what scene you're talking about and I completely agree. He is by far one of my favourite characters to write because he feels so much more than anyone gives him credit for. Hope you enjoyed the update.**

 **To heroherondaletotherescue: Thank you! And there is so much turmoil at the moment and for as long as someone is at the Tessler Races it's probably not going to be going away!**

 **To Mistyrosebleue: She totally thought about/tried to sneak aboard to get to the Tessler races and if I'm honest that was the original way the plot was going to go… But I thought of something better and more fitting :D**

 **To Guest Smiles: So many people were convinced she was going to smuggle herself onboard the** _ **Nexus**_ **! And to be honest she was haha. But like I said in the comment to Mistyrosebleue there are bigger plans :D Hope you enjoyed the up date!**

 **To InfinityMars: Really great to hear you think I'm representing the emotions well! I find them so hard to write accurately. These chapters have had to be edited so much it's unreal. I'm so happy you enjoyed the final scene between Poe and Breha!**

 **To ShigureAyameHatoriFanClub: Oh yeah… she was definitely mean no denying that. I just wanted to show that it was justified in Leia head… and not just her being mean because she felt like it… Yeah Poe was really clueless until she literally yelled it at him :D He's a little bit more aware now I think.**

 **To saramichellegellarfan1: Thank you for both of your reviews! Really glad you're enjoying the fic so far! And yeah… Han's not exactly father of the year haha.**


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

At first Breha struggled day to day. Her mind created horrible scenarios for. Ones where Poe was frantic in the cock-pit of the Tessler racer. He wove in between asteroids, the sides of the rocks scraping the thin hull of the Z-95. There were other racers around him, almost collided with each other as they navigated around the dangerous rocks. Then, like in many of the races she'd witnessed, a chain of seismic charges were detonated causing the asteroids on the course to shift and explode dangerously. Racer after racer was destroyed as they were unable to avoid the shifting rocks, until an asteroid was heading straight for Poe. Those were the nicer scenarios she imagined.

But as days became weeks became months, it got easier. Yes she missed him; yes she thought of him. But her life did not stop because Poe Dameron was not there. Breha Solo was still the commanding mechanic on the resistance base. It frustrated her that the resurgence of the Tessler races into her life had allowed her to forget that and loose who she was. She had spoken to Ben at length about her struggles. Her brother seemed more often than not, to be able to express her emotions better than she was. So it was hard to hide anything from him. Ben had realised the day Poe left, when he helped Breha centre her mind, that she had compartmentalised the damage done 4 years ago. Quite successfully he had to admit, until the races were brought back into her life. All the pain and anger and fear she'd locked away had hit her in one swift blow turning her into a sister he didn't recognise. Since the force mind meld had worked so well with Breha, Ben had regularly repeated the exercise with her.

Breha made her way to the secluded training area alone and stood with her hands clasped behind her back, looking out over the forest covered rolling hills of D'Qar. The low mist that usually surrounded the hills was absent that day allowing her to view more of the green planet's beauty. She knew Ben would sense her and meet her when he was ready.

Breha inhaled and exhaled deeply, closing her eyes. She owed a lot to Ben. He had been there in the early hours when she woke up terrified, unable to recognise where she was. He had been the one to take the hits she threw at him when her mind deluded her in to thinking he was someone else. He had been the one to pull her back to the person she was.

Ben had felt the low surge from Breha even from within his room. Luke would be impressed with how much his powers had developed next time he visited. He collected his practise saber and made his way to join her. When he reached the practise area a surge of pride warmed his chest. Breha was perfectly centred as she stood a few metres from him, her back to him.

All it took was the scuff of his boot against the ground for her eyes snapped open. She was on him in the blink of an eye; her practise saber swung down on Ben with force. The younger Solo managed to block her swing.

"You're getting better at centring your mind." He commented.

"I have a good teacher." She replied.

"He's the best I hear." Ben grinned cheekily. Breha rolled her eyes upwards but couldn't stop the corner of her mouth from pulling upwards. Ben brought his knee up in between the two, aiming for Bree's stomach. She countered quickly, forcing the locked sabers a part and meeting Ben's rising thigh with a sharp, solid hit from her elbow. Ben grunted as he stepped away from her. The muscles in his right thigh going numb. He had to admit her hits were far more accurate than they used to be – and more powerful. Ben rotated the practise saber in his hand as he tested his weight on his thigh. Breha was slowly becoming a fierce combatant. It was a direct result of the increased amount of sparring between the pair. Ben had realised quite quickly that melding with Breha was more successful if they sparred.

The two siblings trained hard against each other until a thin layer of sweat lined their skins; both were breathing heavily and both could feel their muscles ache with exertion. Practise sabers were abandoned as the tired pair sat down next to each other in the middle of the clearing. Breha turned to her brother who was appreciating the view she had earlier.

"You don't have to say it Breha." He spoke suddenly. She blinked in surprise before a small smile claimed her lips.

"I do." She insisted. "Thank you Ben." He finally turned to look at her mirroring her smile. "If you ever need anything, anything at all, just ask me." She said seriously.

"You're welcome Bree." Ben said. The pair sat in silence for a moment. "How's your droid coming along?" Ben asked.

"The BB unit?" She asked. Ben nodded. "Almost completed actually." She said with a fond smile. "I don't know if you've met Captain Karé Kun, but she brought some of the parts I needed. Just waiting for some final pieces and it can stop being a desk ornament and actually do something useful."

"Have you given it a designation number yet?" Ben raised a brow. He knew Breha had been putting off giving the droid a name until it was completed and she was sure it would work.

"Not yet. But if it works I was thinking BB-8" She replied. Breha's communicator sounded from her belt. "Breha here." She answered the small black device.

"There's a problem with the fuel pumps in Hanger 3 and I could do with a hand." Iivan's voice sounded over the line.

"On my way Iivan." Breha replied. She looked to Ben. "Duty calls."

"I'll see you later Bree." He waved a hand lazily. He watched her disappear into the treeline before he reclined back to lay on the sun warmed ground, hands clasped behind his head. It was a relatively clear day on the usually overcast planet and Ben wasn't going to pass up a chance to enjoy it.

Breha entered Hanger 3 where Iivan and R2-L4 were the only occupants in the room. It was protocol to evacuate all non-essential personnel in the event of any fuel problem. It was a rule she had struggled to drill into the new mechanic recruits, since many of them came from the outer rim planets with pod racing backgrounds where protocol wasn't created let alone followed. Iivan on the other hand was a veteran mechanic and one of her old mentors, so she expected no less from him.

"What's up Iivan?" Breha asked, hands in her pockets as she stopped next to him. Iivan raised a brow as he looked her up and down.

"You're in an awfully good mood today." He noted. Breha grinned.

"The sun's out." She shrugged, holding out her hand for the data pad he'd been holding. Iivan relinquished the data pad and rolled his eyes at her comment. Although he had to admit a cheerful Breha was an improvement on the shell of a person he'd been witness to a few months ago.

No one was really too sure what had happened to Breha a few month ago. Iivan had stood in for her for a week when she was off 'ill' – which was odd in itself as he'd seen Breha work through raging fevers. Then when she came back she wasn't herself – she was withdrawn. She wasn't the leader he had become accustom to. And now she stood in front of him as if nothing had ever happened. The entire team was curious as to what happened in that week – no one was courageous enough to ask her though.

"Huh." Breha furrowed her brow as she looked at the data pad. "It's reading as if there's a blockage in the line. But I'm assuming you've run it through?"

"Three times, there's no blockage in the line." Iivan nodded. Breha ran her tongue over her bottom lip thoughtfully.

"What attachment did you use what you ran the line through?" She asked suddenly.

"Standard TZY head, why?" Iivan furrowed his brow.

"Well, there's definitely not a blockage in the line if you've run it three times and found nothing but laminar flow." Breha explained. "But there might be a blockage in the pump attachment for the T-70."

"And because you have to use a TZY attachment to run the line it wouldn't have shown up." Iivan's eyes widened in realisation. Breha nodded in agreement.

"Who's X-wing was it?" She asked.

"Captain Iolo Arana's" Iivan said.

"We can't let anyone try to refuel his T-70 until we've replaced the attachment." Breha pulled the commanding mechanics data pad from her pocket and began typing the warning into the system. The sound of a ship entering the atmosphere caught her attention though. Over the years experienced mechanics on the base were said to be able to identify what model ship had entered the atmosphere just by the sound of it. And whilst Breha was sceptical about the claim, she couldn't help but think that the sound she just heard was unfamiliar. She looked to Iivan and could tell he was thinking exactly the same. "Who's out today?" She asked.

"Green squadron I think." Iivan replied. "I could have sworn I heard them return though." Curiosity won out and the pair of mechanics left the hanger through the outside door and looked up and the sky from the tarmac. Iivan squinted against the sudden brightness of the sun but the outline of what looked to be a light freighter approached the tarmac.

Breha's heart filled with hope as she initially made out a light freighter, only to have that hope ripped from her when the ship got closer and she realised it wasn't the _Nexus_. Her brow furrowed as she identified a Corellian YT-1000 model light freighter. There was no one she knew that flew that model of vessel who was friendly enough to know the location of the resistance base.

"Command centre are you aware of a Corellian YT-1000 entering D'Qar atmosphere?" Breha asked over a secure channel of her communicator.

"Affirmative Breha, they've been granted permission to land." The reply was quick. Breha looked up at Iivan.

"They're supposedly friendly." She raised a brow. The two mechanics watched as the ship touched down on the tarmac in front of them and powered down. The ramp lowered and a pair of black trouser legs were visible first.

Iivan's eyes widened as the two crew members from the YT-1000 stepped out onto the tarmac, he could feel Breha run rigid next to him. He quickly looked down at her and could make out the hard stare she was sending the two people.

"Hand me the commanding pad." Iivan said simply as he held out his hand. Breha swallowed thickly as she handed him the data pad for the lead mechanic. "Take as long as you need." He placed a hand on her shoulder before turning and heading back inside the hanger. Breha's teeth clenched together as she headed towards the new arrivals, fists balled at her sides. She stopped in front of the pair, her glare not weakening in the slightest.

Chewbacca saw her first, a happy roar rising from his throat at the sight of his old friend. Breha wished she could share her friend's elation but her gaze never wavered from her father.

… … … …

 **To JunJunyil: Apologies for the lack of Tessler action in this chapter but I can assure you I've written the first draft of the chapters where the Tessler Races feature so you won't have to wait too much longer! I'm so glad you're enjoying the story I hope you continue to enjoy it!**

 **To heroherondaletotherescue: To be honest I'm not sure how I'm churning out the chapters but I'm rolling with it whilst my fingers are itching to type! Gah! So glad you love the scene where he came into her room. I loved writing it :D I hope you continue to enjoy the fic!**

 **To NicoleR85: Thank you so much for the review! I hope you continue to enjoy the fic**

 **To Deserah: The update you so kindly asked for :D Really good to hear you're still enjoying it!**

 **To engineerwenlock: THANK YOU! Oh my days, I read back over the previous chapters and I have reaaaally over used that phrase. Thank you so much for bringing it to my attention. Constructive criticism like that really helps with being able to improve how I write this fic – there shouldn't be a single mention of the word honey in this chapter :D In a way I'm a little bit glad Breha came across a little bit out of character… because in my mind, based on what Breha has gone through (which will be revealed later in the fic) and how she dealt with it - it wasn't healthy at all for her and she essentially snapped somewhat. She has very much depended on a safe, supportive family to help pull her through a really difficult time. I hope when more details are revealed in later chapters that the flow of events now makes sense and doesn't seem over the top. You'll have to let me know what you think :D And that is massive praise to give, I'm so glad you live the fic and Breha :D**

 **To EstellaCrane: I really feel like an enabler now :D But it really good to hear you're enjoying the fic so much! I hope you enjoyed this chapter as well**

 **To feelthatfire: Thank you so much for your lovely comments on how I write. I've worked on being able to portray scenes accurately… I definitely think my main tests will be the action scenes so you'll have to let me know how those come across! Yes! You liked the shaving comment! I've had that dialogue knocking around my head since about chapter 5 and I was so pleased to finally be able to slot it in :D Oddly enough I was contemplating doing a 'Poe-centric' chapter, but it'd probably be posted after the events of Tessler unfold. And I know I'm dragging these races out but it'll be worth it. Author's promise :D I hope you continue to enjoy the fic**

 **To Civic1980: Thank you for your review! I'm glad that you're enjoying the fic. I hoped you liked this chapter!**


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

The breath caught in Han's throat at the sight of the woman in front of him. A woman who was currently glaring at him in a scarily Leia like manor. Breha - she'd grown so much since he last saw her. If she didn't share such a resemblance to Leia he was ashamed to say he would have struggled to recognise her as the same person he left 4 years ago. Chewie spoke up next to him and slipped by the side of Han.

Breha looked away from her father as Chewie's large figure walked towards her. A pair of large, hairy, Wookie arms wrap around her and lifted her easily from the ground. The frown that had dominated her face lifted at the warmth of the embrace.

"I'm happy to see you too Chewie," She smiled up at her old friend. Chewie had been too great a friend growing up for any tension between her and her father to destroy that. The past flashed in front of Han's eyes for a moment before he could stop it. He remembered a time, back when he still had the _Millennium Falcon_ , when he would take a 4 year old Breha up with him and Chewie. His co-pilot had adored the young girl even back then, picking her up and sitting her on his shoulders as he proudly showed the young child the intricate mechanics of the _Millennium Falcon_.

"Breha." Han called as Chewie let go of her. Her eyes fell on him, looking him up and down. Still wearing the same black jacket of his. He hadn't changed at all, save for a few extra grey hairs and the odd wrinkle. "It's good to see you."

"What do you want?" Breha asked bluntly.

"What, I can't come back to see my family?" Han asked, a single eyebrow quirking.

"Not without an alternative objective, no." The tone of her voice didn't lighten in the slightest.

"Breha-"

"You've been gone for four years and you expect me to believe that suddenly you feel a paternal drive and want to see your family?" She cut over her. "Why are you here?" She punctuated each word clearly, eyes switching between Han and Chewie. She knew Han could and probably would lie to her face; Chewie on the other hand had always found it hard to deceive her.

"Breha, honestly, I've missed you – all of you." He said earnestly, taking a few steps towards Breha. Her chest ached, there was a time when she would have given anything to hear him say those words. To have him back on D'Qar. But those desires had been those of a child. Desires of a time long gone.

"Chewie?" She asked eyeing the Wookie. Breha could tell immediately by the way the co-pilot was shifting his weight on his feet that there was something Han wasn't telling her. Breha narrowed her eyes at the Wookie until he gave in - low whine like grumble. Breha's jaw clenched at the Wookie's words.

"Chewie!" Han stared wide eyed at his co-pilot as he ratted him out. Chewie whined loudly, opening his arms out to the side.

"Desperate to see your family huh?" Breha asked coldly. "Or desperate to fix the hyperdrive generator in that ancient freighter?"

"Honestly Bree, that's not the only reason I'm here." Han tried to step closer to her again but she took an equal sized step backwards.

"I don't want to hear it." Breha shook her head. "Save it for mum and Ben, who for some unfathomable reason still seem to want you around." She growled. Anger brewed deep in her gut at the thought of having to help the man who walked out on her. She exhaled slowly with her eyes closed, forcing the anger to stay down, before turning to Chewie. "Have you got a list of what you need?" She asked as she walked past her father and towards the Wookie.

"Breha," Han tried to reach for her arm as she passed him, but she jerked the limb away before he even got close.

"Don't." She warned. "I will get the parts your ship needs and install them but that is it." She took a couple of threatening steps towards Han. "I want nothing to do with you. I'll fix the freighter and then you can get the hell off of D'Qar."

"You really want me gone Breha?" He asked, his own eyes narrowed on her. From the side she could hear the sound of approaching foot falls.

"The sooner the better. You're no good for us." Breha growled before turning swiftly on her heel and striding over to Chewbacca. She spared one glance over her shoulder, her mother was greeting Han warmly. Ben stood to Leia's side and even he had a smile on his face for their father's return. She recognised the smile on his face. It was the look she was sure she would have had if she still yearned for her father. But that yearning had been quelled a few years ago. The hole that Han's departure had left in her had been filled with new friends and responsibility. Her eyes softened – Ben still had that hole to fill.

Chewie whined quietly from behind her. The large Wookie had been leading the way but had stopped when heh noticed Breha lagging behind. She looked up at him and sighed.

"I'm okay Chewie." She assured him. He placed a large furry hand on her head in comfort as she fell into step next to him. "Let's just get to work."

Breha was laying, mostly hidden underneath the generator as she accessed a circuit board. Chewie was installing the larger parts on the top side of the generator. They worked well as a pair, Chewie could reach the top side of the generator without the ladder Breha would have needed and she could fit into the small space underneath the generator. She'd just finished replacing the panel when her communicator beeped from her belt.

"Breha here." She answered.

"The General has requested you at the central command centre." Tomas, her mother's assistant, spoke. Breha sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose.

"Is my father there?" She asked. Tomas's hesitated on the other end of the line. "Just answer the question Tomas."

"Yeah he is." Tomas answered reluctantly. What the hell could he want now? Breha released the bridge of her nose from her grip and slid out from underneath the generator.

"I'm on my way." She grumbled. "I've got to go Chewie but the circuits are good to go." She wiped her hands on the thighs of her overalls. Chewie nodded, responding that he was almost done installing the replacement compressors.

She entered the command centre and blinked the odd sight of seeing her mother, Ben and Han all stood discussing something that looked to be very serious in the centre of the room. Glancing around, Breha noted that everyone who didn't have high security clearance was absent from the room.

"You wanted to see me?" Breha began as she stopped next to her mother, having breezed past her father. Leia looked fleetingly at Han before back to her daughter. Breha could tell by her mother's apprehensive expression that she wasn't going to like the next words that came from her mouth.

"We've receive word on Poe." She said. Breha immediately tensed: 'word _on_ Poe' was very different and almost always worse than 'word _from_ Poe'. "He's in trouble." Breha swallowed thickly. Her palms laid flat against the computer table, clenching the metal tightly. She could feel Ben offering her his presence gently, letting her know he was there is she needed him. Her eyes fell to her brother fleetingly to assure him that she was handling the news. Memories of Tessler had destroyed her once, she wouldn't let them win a second time.

"How much trouble?" Breha managed to ask. She was very grateful for Ben's training in that moment, otherwise her thoughts would have torn her apart.

"He's managed to land himself on the wrong side of Tut Veeta." Han said, arms folded over his chest. Veeta was a particularly nasty gangster who hung around the Tessler Races since he did a lot of business with the Cavrilhu pirates. Breha's eyes snapped to her father eyeing him up and down.

"You reported this?" She asked eyebrows raised.

"Han saw Poe when he was at the Tessler Races a few days ago." Leia supplied.

"Like I said the busted generator isn't the only reason I'm here." Han said, crossing his arms over his chest.

"How did you know he was one of ours?" Breha narrowed her eyes at her father.

"The kid looks too Republic for his own good." Han scoffed. "And since the Republic aren't daring enough to send someone to the Tessler Races that left the Resistance." He spoke as if it was obvious. "Veeta thought so too."

"Shit." Breha exhaled, the very mention of Veeta gave cause for a shiver to ripple across the back of her neck. Her eyes found her mothers. "We need to get him out of there. Veeta will kill him: either he finds out Poe is Resistance or he loses interest. Either way Poe is dead."

"Agreed, Poe needs to be extracted." Leia nodded.

"I'm going." Breha volunteered immediately. In her periphery she could see Ben shift uneasily.

"You?" Han raised his eyebrows. Breha shot him an unimpressed glare. "The Cavrilhu don't tend to react well to new faces."

"We're aware." Breha shot back lowly.

"Breha, are you sure you want to do this?" Ben asked quietly. She looked at her brother, easily reading the concern across his face.

"I need to Ben." She nodded. Han watched as his daughter turned back to Leia, eyes glinting passionately. She was a lot fiercer than she was 4 years ago. Leia eyed her daughter carefully before nodding reluctantly. It went against every maternal instinct in her body to allow her daughter to return to that retched place.

"We both know you're going to go anyway." Leia rolled her eyes. Breha's mouth quirked upwards but quickly fell as she turned to her father.

"I'm borrowing your ship." She said simply.

"Oh no, if you're on my ship, you're there as a passenger." He placed his own palms flat on the table.

"I don't need you." Breha growled at him. Leia placed a hand on her daughter's shoulder.

"Breha." She said urged. "If you go, he goes." Breha licked her bottom lip, her father was the last person she wanted to be stuck on a ship with. But she knew she needed a clean ship that wasn't tied to the resistance – a frustrated huff escaped from her nose.

"Chewie and I are almost finished with the repairs. We leave when they're finished." Breha ordered. Leia let out a small sigh of relief she knew Han Solo and Chewie were two fine people to have in your corner when things got hairy. "Was there anything else you needed?" She asked her mother. Leia shook her head. As soon as she was dismissed Breha was quick to turn on her heel and stride out of the command centre.

"She gets that from you, you know." Han said dryly to Leia.

"Oh no, that was all from you." Leia shook her head with a smirk before turning and moving towards another section of the command centre. Ben watched as Han followed after her, quietly bickering with her. His gaze dropped to the map of the Kauron system displayed on the screen and his hands clenched tightly beside him.

Breha returned to the freighter and briefed Chewie quickly. The protective Wookie wasn't keen on her going to the Tessler Races but relented eventually and continued to repair and prepare the ship with her. Once the freighter was prepared she quickly grabbed her go-bag – the one she'd failed to unpack since Poe left – and her blasters. It had been a long time since the twin blasters had sat in their holsters on either thigh but it felt comfortable to have them back there. She left her room without a backwards glance and walked quickly through the corridors to Iivan's workshop. She entered the workshop after a sharp knock and was relieved to see Iivan stood at one of his work benches. The greying man turned to see who had entered his workshop and froze as he saw Breha armed with two blasters.

"I hope you didn't shoot him." Iivan said dryly, obviously referring to Han.

"No." Breha shook. "Not yet anyway." She added with a smirk. "I need to leave for a bit Iivan. And you're the only one I trust to take command." She began as she walked to stand opposite him. Iivan looked her up and down. It hadn't escaped his notice that Breha hadn't been her usual self the last few months. But the woman who stood in front of him was the Breha of old.

"It'd be a pleasure." Iivan nodded. Breha flashed him a thankful smile.

"Thank you Iivan." She nodded to him before turning and exiting his workshop. He called her name just before she could exit.

"Are you going to have to use those?" Iivan asked, his eyes dropping to the blasters. She followed his gaze before looking up.

"There's a high chance I'm going to get shot at." She nodded. Iivan inhaled slowly.

"Give them hell, kid." He wished simply. Breha couldn't refrain from smiling at the older man before quickly turning and exiting his workshop.

She stepped outside onto the tarmac eyeing up the repaired freighter. The wind carried the muffled sound of voices to her and she turned to see Ben. He was sat on a crate on the edge of the tarmac, their father sat with him. She waited away from the pair and found herself watching them with an ache in her chest. Her gut told her that she was beyond the point of being able to repair the fatherly bond she once had with Han. But Ben still adored him. He'd been younger when Han had left, and it was still quite obvious he yearned for a father. Ben's head looked up suddenly and his eyes found Breha. Han followed his son's gaze. They shared a final few words before the pair stood up and made their way over to her.

"I'll see you over at the ship." Han said as he passed Breha. Her head turned to follow him as he passed her and made a beeline straight for Leia who'd joined them out on the tarmac.

"Are you sure you're strong enough for this?" Ben asked as he stopped in front of Breha.

"Thanks to you, I am." She responded without hesitation. She could see the hidden worry behind his eyes and pulled him into a tight hug. "I'll be fine Ben. Just trust me." She whispered into his black curls. His arms tightened around her.

"Remember to focus." He said simply when she pulled away from him. Breha smiled fondly; they were words Ben often uttered to her when they sparred. The two siblings then turned and walked towards their parents.

"Take care of yourselves." Leia wished both Han and Breha. Breha nodded and gave her mother a final hug before looking to her father.

"Let's go." He jerked his head towards the YT-1000. Breha's eyes flashed to her mother and brother one final time before she turned with her father and the pair walked towards the ship. Chewie was already on board starting up the ignition sequence.

Leia's heart ached as she watched the pair walked up the ramp of the ship together. Saying goodbye to Han was always hard. But saying goodbye to Han and Breha was unbearable.

… … … … … … … …

 **To heroherondaletotherescue: Hmmm! Poor Bree, but the Bree we first met is slowly returning. And definitely! I miss writing Poe's character! And Han has returned… I was in two minds with how Bree would react to Han returning. At first I thought about making her completely angry… but that would have ignored the fact that she knows Ben still wants Han around… and she loves Ben. So I think this is how Bree would have reacted… What did you think of their reunion?**

 **To KeepingThemAtBay: Unfortunately Han does have bad news on Poe :( And Poe has been gone for months the races are intense, but he absence is more to do with the espionage… all will become clear, author's promise. The YT-1000 is not the same model at the** _ **Falcon**_ **, it's the same series so they look similar but the YT-1000 is an earlier model. I too love the Ben/Bree scenes they're such vital parts of the others life.**

 **Have a nice day to!**

 **To JunJunyil: GAH! Thank you so much! This update took a little longer as the Han/Breha reunion was written god knows how many times… I think I found the right balance of angry/sad/concern-for-Ben in her reaction. AND! The Tessler races are around the corner! Just as a quick heads up, this upcoming week in pretty manic for me with other deadlines so chapters may not be every other day but I'll try to make there as frequent as possible! Hope you enjoyed the chapter.**

 **To the Guest from 12** **th** **Feb: Thank you for your lovely praise of my OC! I get really worried sometimes about Breha coming across as a Mary-Sue or some psycho-for-no-reason so it's good to hear that's not the case! And yeaaaah 'honey eyes' was used waaaaaay too much. That phrase shouldn't appear again in a while… maybe never. I hope you continue to enjoy the fic!**

 **To ShigureAyameHatoriFanClub: Thank you for BOTH of your reviews! I too am missing Poe :( and Breha is somewhat force-sensitive… she's nowhere neat the level of Ben or Luke or Anakin, or even Leia for that matter. I imagine Bree's force abilities to be a bit like Maz's… she can feel something there and has a good 'gut instinct' but that's about it… And to be honest, even if Breha wasn't force sensitive she wouldn't stay behind when the galaxy is falling to shit… That's just not her :D And (maybe controversially) I've not made Ben hate Han yet. I've tried to explain why in the chapter but you'll have to let me know what you think! As for your other thoughts on how the story might progress I reply simply with "No spoilers".**

 **To feelthatfire: Yeeeah months have passed. Much like when Breha went to Tessler the first time around you have to be 'in' to get any sort of information so his undercover role has been for the long haul. I'm glad to have Breha back to herself. Writing an emotionally unsteady Breha was heart wrenching. And I have a suspicion that quite a few people expected Breha to explode in an angry ball in front of Han… And in all honesty I did write the chapter that way to begin with… and then it got to Ben's reaction and it didn't work. I hope this has come across as believable… possibly most nervous for this chapter to be read then any of the others!**

 **To sarahmichellegellarfan1: Thank you! Hope you enjoyed this one**

 **To thebeezekneeze: Thank you! Such lovely praise! I'm so glad that you like Breha :D I hope you enjoyed this chapter!**

 **To Mistyrosebleue: Hmmm, Han has returned. Quite nervous about people's reactions as to how Breha has dealt with his return… But this is how I imagined her to react. And there is news one Poe… it just wasn't good news :(**


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

Once the course to the Kauron system was plotted Han left Chewie in the cockpit and retreated to the communal area of the freighter. Breha was sat at the small square table to the side. Her gaze rose from her fingers to meet his.

"Can I trust you?" Breha asked. "And if the answer is no I need you to tell me now. I _can_ do this alone; but I need to know that I'm on my own."

"I'm not letting you go back there alone." Han replied as if it was obvious, sitting down next to her. Breha turned to look at him, eyes widened slightly, there were few people who knew she'd been to Tessler before – Han wasn't supposed to be one of them.

"Mum told you I was there before didn't she?" Breha asked. Han shook his head.

"Ben." Han watched as Breha opened her mouth to speak but quickly shut it again and turned to look back at her fingers.

She couldn't help the guilt that gnawed away in her gut. Whilst she couldn't sense other people's emotional presence in the force she didn't have to be able to in order to see Ben's distress at her departure. He'd worked so hard to pull her back from the state she'd been falling into and she'd just asked him to stand back and watch as she flew back to the place that caused it.

"You shouldn't have gone alone then either." He said simply. Breha scoffed.

"You're about four years too late to play the concerned parent." She said.

"I'm still your father Breha." Han reminded.

"Are you sure about that?" Breha raised her brow. "Because you left."

"I was always going to come back." He said. Her eyebrows pinched together in disbelief.

"You don't get it do you?" She said as she shook her head. "It's not that you left. It _why_ you left." She narrowed her gaze. "There are countless pilots who leave every day. But leaving for them is leaving their home."

"Bree, I left to find the _Falcon_." Han said quietly.

"Exactly. You left to try and find your home." Breha said. "We should be your home." She held his gaze for a moment before turning to look back at her fingers sadly. "You're not good for us like this." She said. "Mum and Ben don't realise it." She admitted. "She has grown used to it and I think Ben doesn't see it because he never flew with you in the _Falcon_." She flexed her fingers and turned to Han. "Either be with us or don't be there at all." His heart ached as her eyes filled with water. "You aren't good for us like this." She stressed. "If you continue, our family will fall apart." He dared to reach out for her hands and she didn't pull away from his touch that time.

"That won't happen Bree." He assured her. Her eyes met his, no longer watery but not quite being able to muster a glare. She swallowed thickly and pulled her hands away from his. She could feel the hole he'd made when he'd left reopening, begging her to let her father back into her life. Her teeth clenched as she forced herself to shut away all thoughts of welcoming this man back as her father. She couldn't risk it.

Chewie's head emerged from the door way to inform the two Solo's that they were approaching the Kauron System. The wookie couldn't have arrived at a better time for Breha. She was up in the blink of an eye and slipping past Chewie towards the cockpit. Han and Chewie were quick to follow her.

"That's mine." Han said as he pulled her back by her shoulder before she could sit herself in the pilot's seat. She went to move to the co-pilot seat but a cry from Chewie had her rolling her eyes and stepping aside for the Wookie. She ended up standing behind them, elbows resting on either chair as she ducked to see clearly out of the window.

The ship dropped out of hyperspace, the streaks of light returning to pinpoints. Breha's breath caught in her throat as the large Kauron asteroid field came into view, threatening rocks floated ominously in the space in front of them. An explosion in the distance caught the attention of the three in the cockpit.

"There's a race going on." Breha said solemnly. The fire ball from the crashed ship died down to reveal the debris of the racer squashed like a bug against the rock. Buzzing around the crash, 4 more racers passed by. Little thought was given to the dead pilot. Breha waited to watch as people approach the debris in envrio-suits – the vultures. Those people weren't approaching the wreckage to search for the pilot. They were there to fish through the remains of the pilot for salvageable parts; they were the mechanics. Flashes of blaster fire could be made out against the dark rock of the asteroid as the mechanics fought against each other for viable parts.

"That's good for us." Han said as he pulled the freighter around. The distraction of the race would work well for their approach. Han wove carefully through the asteroids and the large, central asteroid came into site. It was the size of a small moon with an extensive metal base sprawled over its surface. The base had originally been the base of the Cavrilhu pirates, but over time the base became the central hub for the Tessler races.

"Veeta resides in the northern sector of the base." Breha pointed over Han's shoulder. "We'd do better if we land in the Western sector."

"I've got it." Han assured her as he guided the freighter down into the Western sector. "Relax." He threw the comment over his shoulder at Breha, batting her hand out of the way.

"I'm fine." Breha said with pursed lips. Chewie let out a whine, asking if they actually had a plan. "Yeah, Chewie I do." Breha replied to the Wookie. "There's an old," she paused as she struggled for the best way to describe Pav, "acquaintance of mine in the Western sector. He has eyes and ears all over the base, he's our best bet to being able to find out where exactly Poe is being held. Once we know where Poe is held we can sneak in and get him out."

"You trust this guy?" Han raised a brow.

"No." Breha breathed. "But without him we're left wandering around Veeta's territory blind – and that's just suicidal." Breha bit her bottom lip; snooping around Veeta's area was probably what landed Poe in the situation he was in currently. "Plus, he owes me one."

Han landed the freighter in an empty dock in a quieter part of the Western sector. The dock was very quiet due to the fact that almost everyone on the base was busy watching the race. Han turned to face Breha once he'd put the ship down only to find she'd left the cockpit. He quickly entered the communal area of the ship and paused as he watched Breha finish wrapping a dark grey scarf around the lower part of her face, there was enough material to drape comfortably over her shoulders. Between her clothes and her scarf the only visible section of flesh was the pale skin of her forehead and her eyes. His gut lurched uncomfortably.

"Are you marked?" he asked. Her body ran rigid for only a moment before she forced herself to relax and turned to face him. "Breha." he added when she didn't answer him.

"Yes." She answered quietly observing his reaction carefully. It was brief, but she saw the disgust that passed over his face, and it hurt her more than it should to know that she'd disappointed him and repulsed him. She had to give him credit though, the disgust didn't last long – anger soon replaced it.

"You didn't think it would be important to mention that before we landed?" He asked in a low sarcastic growl. "You need to leave here." He said as Chewie joined them having collected his bowcaster. He whined to ask what the hold-up was.

"Not without Poe." She replied resolutely. Both Solo's ignored the Wookie, much to Chewbacca's ire.

"Is the one who marked you still here?" He asked. She didn't have to answer. He knew by the way she looked at him that the one who marked her - the one who claimed her as property - was still at Tessler. "Then you definitely need to leave here." Han grew more frustrated.

"I was marked by a small-timer." She lied easily to Han. The person who marked her wasn't a small-timer at all. He was one of the biggest figure heads at Tessler. "This won't be a problem." She stared at him, daring him to challenge her again.

"I don't like this." Han grumbled as he pointed a finger at Breha.

"Like I said. I can do this alone." Breha reminded him. Chewie whined quietly to Han. Chewbacca was right – they couldn't leave her.

"That's not an option kid." Han shook his head as he sighed in frustration. "Let's go." Han said as he motioned with his chin to the exit. "But for the record I don't like this." He pointed a finger at Breha as he passed her on his way to the exit. Breha raised her eyebrows at his comment but followed him nonetheless.

None of them noticed as they exited the freighter that a pair of dark brown, owlish eyes were watching them carefully from the shadows of the dock. Much like Breha, only half of the persons face was visible as the high, tight collar of their black top obscured everything up to their eyes. Their head tilted to the side around the crate to follow the strange people as they exited the dock. Their brow furrowed with curiosity.

Breha's eyes roamed over the halls of Tessler as the three walked through them. The place had hardly changed at all. Multiple pubs branched off of the walkway each playing their own variety of shady music. They were almost always accompanied by a bookies and multiple screens of the race course.

Han walked closely behind Breha. So much so that when he leant down to speak quietly into her ear his chest brushed against her shoulder. The corner of her mouth twitched in annoyance at his protective behaviour. Passers-by were going to start thinking she was someone important - someone worth protecting - if he didn't back up.

"So where does this acquaintance of yours lurk?" Han asked quietly.

"The dregs of this sector." Breha replied.

"Of course he does." Han rolled his eyes. The main central sector was the largest of all on the base and the oldest, having been the original base for the pirates. Over time branch sectors had been established: Western, Easter, Southern and Northern. As was the nature of the people who visited Tessler, shadier regions of these branch sectors had been built up over time – the Dregs. They were places those who wanted to hide disappeared to. They were also the place where most people lost their lives or their freedom.

"This way." Breha ignored her father's comment and took a sharp left, ducking under a heavy sheet of maroon cloth. "And back up a bit would you." She tossed over her shoulder, shooting Han and unimpressed glare. Han raised his hands in the air in a sarcastic surrender.

"Whatever you want missy." He replied. The corner of her lips twitched again in annoyance.

With a frustrated huff Breha turned back to face forwards and slipped through a small gap to enter a reasonably sized circular room. In the centre of the room the rat like figure of Pav sat comfortably in his self-appointed throne. Surrounding him were three hired goons, all Weequay men, heavily armed with blasters. Her sudden arrival through the small gap earned an alarmed squeak from Pav. The gap was his secret back door that he used to escape the room if a meeting went south so it was a surprise to have a masked woman enter through it. The three hired goons were quick to point their weapons at her. Breha raised her hands slowly in a surrender. Han and Chewie were quick to enter behind her, the latter whining about how small the gap was.

"Acquaintance huh?" Han asked as he joined her in raising his hands. Breha opened her mouth to reply but a laugh from Pav cut her off.

"Han Solo?" Pav asked through a high pitched laugh. "You must be desperate to wander down this far into the western dregs?" He sniggered. Han blinked in surprise at the reaction of a man he'd never met. He shared a cautious look with Chewie who just shrugged.

"You know me… I like to explore a bit." Han replied airily as he lowered his hands.

"Hmmm." Pav clicked his tongue. "It's a wasted venture, even I know better than to do business with a man like you." His sniggering had subsided as he turned to the Weequay goon next to him. "Get rid of them." He said simply. The goon raised his blaster.

"Hay hay hay! There's no need for that." Han held his hand up the goon pointing the blaster at them.

"Do business with me then Pav." Breha spoke loudly and clearly. The rat like man froze in his step having been on his way to exit the room. His heart still in his chest at the familiarity of this voice that addressed him. He turned slowly, his face paling by the second. Narrowed eyes looked Breha up and down slowly. She looked very little like the girl he knew from before and the scarf hid the marks that would confirm her identity. But it was her voice, the way she addressed him – that hadn't changed.

"You died." He whispered quietly. His hands waved at the goons to lower their weapons but his eyes never left the woman in front of him.

"Do I look dead to you?" She raised a brow.

… … … … … … … … …

 **Author's note to everyone – this is longest I've gone without updating so apologies to everyone! I have a very busy few weeks but I'll try and keep the chapters coming. X**

 **To heroherondaletotherescue: Thank you so much for your review and I'm so happy that you think that Breha's reaction was valid and believable. Hmmm! A rescue mission together is the perfect opportunity for Breha and Han to have some time together. Very much girl power! And the Tessler races will hopefully allow you to see a side of Breha that's only been hinted at before now :) hope you enjoyed the chapter.**

 **To JunJunyil: Longest it's taken me to update yet, but I'm definitely not going to make you wait a year! And the Tessler races are here and action is waiting around the corner. I'm glad you enjoyed the reaction of Han to Breha! Hope you enjoyed this chapter!**

 **To feelthatfire: Thank you so much for your review. The Han/Breha interactions are still some of the hardest the write because they are quite similar in character. And I think it's pretty hard to go on a mission with a person and not grow closer to them… It happened to Han-Luke and Han-Leia after all! Ah! You're comments in the review about Poe made me laugh so much! And I think we all hope for Poe to be in one piece! Hope you enjoyed the chapter.**

 **To ShigureAyameHatoriFanClub: So many feels! And you rock on with those musical terms! I hope your musical goes well – Break a leg!**

 **To NicoleR85: Thank you for your review! I hope you enjoyed the chapter.**

 **To Katerineaki: Haha! Thank you so much for your review and for sure and Wookie and Smuggler make this fanfiction a lot more interesting! And I can see reason for Poe and one of his rescuers to have a conversation or two ;)**

 **To saramichellegellarfan1: Thank you for your review! And I'll let the fic answer that question for you!**

 **To mistyrosebleue: Lots of hard feelings and that was explored somewhat in this chapter… but I have no doubt it'll come up again… it's such a large part of their dynamic. I hope you enjoyed this chapter**

 **To Holden: Welcome to Namesake! It's lovely to hear from new readers and even better to receive such wonderful praise. It's lovely to hear that the story is well rounded and comes across so well :D I hope you continue to enjoy the fic!**


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

"Leave us." Pav ordered the three Weequay goons he'd hired. The three hesitated for a moment eyeing Chewbacca cautiously. "Leave if you want to get paid." Pav snapped. That got the three moving. They exited the room in no time at all. The rat like man quickly turned his attention back to Breha and raised his hand warningly as she tried to take a step towards him. "You need to prove who you are. Without a doubt." His eyes dropped to the grey scarf before returning to meet her gaze.

"You know it's me Pav." Breha tried to persuade him. Pav narrowed his eyes questioningly at Breha before his gaze flickered back to Han and Chewie who stood behind either of her shoulders. Why the likes of someone like her would be in league with Han Solo was beyond him – but he guessed everyone got desperate at some point.

"I need proof, Relik." Pav's voice didn't waver. An uncomfortable lump settled in Breha's throat as Pav used the name she'd gone by when she was last at Tessler. He noticed her hesitation once again. His eyes widened as realisation passed over him. "They don't know do they?" he asked. The look on Breha's face gave him his answer and he burst into a round of sniggers once again. "Oh this is rich Rel." He laughed. "Han Solo the smuggler doesn't even realise what he's smuggled."

Han grew tired of the riddles the pair were talking in and leant forward to grab Breha's arm. He pulled her back so that her ear was level with his mouth.

"Care to fill us in?" He asked lowly. Breha shrugged out of his grasp and took a few steps away from him, turning so that all three men in the room could see her.

"You know how I said small timer?" She asked as she raised her hands to grasp at the edges of her scarf. "I lied." She admitted. The material unravelled from around her face and where there was once just pale skin, intricate silver lines now crawled all over her jaw, neck and shoulders. Han's brow furrowed as she continued to remove her jacket to reveal more extensive coverage of her arms, even over her hands. The vest top she wore prevented them from seeing anymore but there was no doubt in his mind that the silver tattoos covered most of her upper body. Han's gut lurched. There were only a few people who bore tattoos like that – lines that were only visible under the specific wavelength of light emitted by the lights at Tessler.

Tattooing was a large part of the culture at Tessler. When Breha had said she was marked by a small timer Han had assumed there was a small identifying mark on her neck that showed she worked a garage for someone. He hadn't even considered that those extensive silver lines were the marks she bore. There were many factions at Tessler, each had their own iconography for tattooing those that worked under them. The most significant of which were the pilots who flew in the races and the vulture-mechanics that were sent in after to compete for parts. Both events were sports to be bet upon. With each successful return the pilots and vulture mechanics would get tattooed more to show their achievement and value. It was a mark of strength for the leader of a faction to have heavily tattooed pilots and vulture-mechanics serving them.

"Breha." Han whispered hoarsely. For Breha to be tattooed to the extent she was she would have had to have competed countless times and made it back.

"Don't." she shook her head. She turned to face Pav who was grinning gleefully. "Happy?" She snapped.

"Very." He grinned as he sauntered towards her, eyes roaming over the tattoos. He stopped in front of her and ran the back of his first two fingers lightly down Breha's neck. "My Relik is back." He purred in her ear. Pav laughed again as Breha slapped his hand away angrily and exhaled heavily through her nostrils, moving quickly covered herself back up. "There was once a time you wore those marks proudly." He reminded quietly.

"That's not me anymore." She huffed, the scarf now firmly back in place. Pav turned to look at her sceptically as he slouched back down into his chair. The Tessler races changed people and as much as she tried to deny that and hide it away he knew her efforts would be wasted.

"Apparently so," he sneered mockingly. "Breha is the name you're going by now?" Pav asked. She shot him a dangerous glare. Her name didn't sound right coming from his lips. "Just asking." He excused with a smirk. "Wouldn't want to slip up in front of the wrong people." He added slyly whilst motioning for his three visitors to take the seats opposite his chair. Breha's teeth ground together but she accepted his offer to sit down and bit back her sharp reply. She still needed him.

As she sat down she glanced over to her father and Chewie. She wasn't entirely sure what his reaction to her tattoos and what they meant she'd done was. He was unusually quiet, which unnerved her and his face seemed to be stuck in a frown. His gaze met hers for a moment and anger began to replace his frown but it faded the moment he dropped her gaze. A sick gnawing began in the bottom of Breha's stomach.

"So _Breha_ ," Pav continued to wear that annoying grin of his. Her eyes narrowed coldly as she turned to face the informant.

"I need information." She said simply. Pav raised a brow. "There's a man being held by Tut Veeta, a pilot." Breha watched Pav's reaction carefully. To Han and Chewie, Pav kept an incredibly straight face but Breha knew him and could see that he knew something about Poe. "You know who I'm referring to." She added when Pav went to open his mouth. The informant shut his mouth quickly and pursed his lips as he regarded Breha.

"Information like this is going to cost you." He said.

"I figured it was about time you repaid that favour." She replied with a raised brow.

"Why the interest in the pilot?" Pav asked curiously.

"Information like that is going to cost you." Breha replied quickly earning a laugh from Pav.

"You may have a different name, but you haven't changed at all." He grinned as he pointed a finger at her. Breha's gut twisted uncomfortably.

"The pilot Pav?" She raised a brow.

"Yes, yes the pilot." He rolled his eyes as he stood from his chair and walked over to a large black box. Pav placed his hands either side of the box causing a seamless draw to open at the front. Inside the draw was a small data chip. He returned to his chair and pressed the centre of the chip, a hologram of Veeta's area materialised with a blue dot noting Poe's location. "This is the pilot's last known location."

"How old is the data?" Breha asked, her keen eyes roaming over the map analytically.

"2 days as of tonight." Pav replied. Breha nodded and held out her gloved hand. Pav clicked the button in the data chip causing the map to disappear and threw the small black device to Breha.

"Thanks." Breha said as she stood from her seat, Han and Chewie followed her action. "And you haven't seen me." She added warning him to keep his mouth shut.

"You and I both know, for the right questions at the right price I've seen everything." Pav smirked. Breha tensed and her hand flew to her blaster instinctively, gloved fingers caressing the metal. "Ah, ah ahhh." Pav warned her like a mother would a child who was about to do something wrong. Han tensed as Pav hopped from his seat and sauntered over to Breha. The informant's hand right arm looped casually around the front of her neck to cup her head from behind as he leant forward and whispered in her ear. Pav stepped away from Breha, his hand running along her covered skin and a warning look passed between the pair. Breha swallowed thickly before nodding and removing her hand from her blaster. Her eyes fell momentarily to Han and Chewie and motioned for them to follow her out of the room.

Breha's shoulders were tense as she led the way back through the walkway. With the race over there were many more tattooed individuals roaming the halls. They commanded nothing but respect and fear from anyone who passed them by. Crowds cleared to let them walk whatever path they desired.

Han was no longer walking so closely behind her and his silence continued to unnerve her. Just as she passed by a small gap in the wall of the walkway Han's hand quickly grasped her upper arm and dragged her with him into the small space. It took all of her restraint not to scream at the sudden movement.

"Guard the entrance." Han said lowly to Chewie, the wookie nodded his hairy head in response and turned to lean against the gap. His wider frame almost completely blocked off the entrance.

"What are you doing?" Breha hissed quietly as they entered a small area where the gap widened out, not by much though, three people would be cramped in the space. Han turned her around and pushed her back against the wall, his hands quickly ripped the scarf from her neck. Breha's open mouth quickly shut as she realised what he wanted to see. Her head fell back against the wall and her eyes stared at the ceiling, glaring at the light that made her past visible.

Han's brown eyes roamed over the silver lines reading their iconography; he wanted to know exactly who claimed his daughter as their property. She'd been too far away for him to read them properly in front of Pav. The more he read of the silver lines the tighter his chest felt. He raised a hand to graze over the marks and he could feel her swallow thickly. The tattoos were unmistakeable – Tut Veeta claimed her.

"Breha." Han said, pain obvious in his voice. He looked up to her face and his heart ached at the pain and disgust she tried to hold back. Her eyes widened as Han easily wrapped his large arms around her and cradled her head into his chest.

"I'm sorry." Breha found herself mumbling into his shirt as her hands grasped his jacket tightly. Han hushed her soothingly as he ran a hand over the back over her head.

"Did he have you race?" Han asked.

"No." Breha answered quietly. Han gritted his teeth as he looked up the ceiling. If she didn't race, she had to have earnt those tattoos from competing as a vulture, which meant she'd killed for that man – rather successfully if the extent of her tattoos was anything to go by.

"That's not you, not anymore." Han assured her as he held her tighter. The breath caught in Breha's throat and she pulled back enough to be able to look her father in the eye.

"What if it is?" She asked quietly.

"Would they be the type of person to rescue a friend?" Han asked in reply. Breha paused as she looked at Han as if seeing him for the first time. Han gently let go of his daughter and handed her back her scarf, waiting as she wrapped the protective material around her face and shoulders once again. The pair exited the small gap and paused as they saw Chewie cautiously eyeing a shadowed corner between two stalls. The wookie let out a quiet whine.

"Someone's following us?" Breha narrowed her eyes on the gap the wookie had been watching. There was no one there now.

"Let's get back to the ship." Han broke the silence after all three failed to see anything more from the shadows. Breha nodded and fell into step behind her father and Chewie. Had she glanced back she might have seen the large brown eyes following the movements of the three with intrigue.

Poe's bloodied head was slumped forward. The skin around his eyes was swollen from the previous beating making the cracks in the dirty floor of his cell hard to see. He was pretty sure they only thing keeping him upright were the energy shackles around his wrist and ankles, holding him in a crucifix position. Every time he took a breath in a sharp stabbing pain erupted from his right side so he was fairly certain they'd broken some ribs. The door to his cell opened and the pilot managed to raise his head in defiance. He manged to make out a blurry fist swinging down and catching him painfully on the side of his temple. He grunted and felt fresh, warm blood trickle down the side of his face and neck. He was so covered in his own blood that the silver lines of his tattoos weren't even visible anymore.

"You know, starting with the head is never the best approach for an interrogation." Poe smirked. He was met with another round of hits for his comment.

… … … … … … … … … …

 **To JunJunyil: Thank you for your review! I'm so glad you're excited about Tessler! And the whole "marking" :D It's always great to hear such praise about the little world this fanfiction creates and that you love being in it! I hope you enjoyed this chapter!**

 **To WaywardandWanderlust: Gah! Best praise ever! I've drafted soooo many MarySue characters by mistake before and cringed when I read back over them so for you to say that Breha is a breath of fresh air is fantastic! I hope you enjoyed the latest chapter!**

 **To tssheila: Apologies for the cliff hanger! I try not to use them too often :D And Poe is around I just couldn't write his parts until other facts in the plot had been revealed haha. And considering the 'rescue' will happen next chapter Poe will definitely be back. Hope you enjoyed the chapter**

 **To Bluedog02: Ahhh! Thank you! It's great to hear from someone that's been following the fic from the beginning (bodes well that I've managed to keep you interested!) And thank you for such wonderful praise. I genuinely work hard to try and keep everyone as in character as possible so it's great to hear that's the case! Hope you enjoyed the latest chapter.**

 **To heroherondaletotherescue: Thank you for your review… A bit more Breha and Han in this one you'll be pleased! And be prepared for a daring rescue coming this way soon!**

 **To NicoleR85: Thank you for your review! I hope you enjoyed the latest chapter.**

 **To feelthatfire: Bit more of a wait and a bit more of a filler (apologies) but important pieces of information had to be laid down and hence this chapter was born haha. Thank you so much for your review, to make a filler chapter interesting is one hell of a feat and getting Han in character even more so! So it's great to hear that those are coming across :D I hope you enjoyed the chapter and I think we're all looking forward to welcoming Poe back into the fic. I've missed him.**

 **To ShigureAyameHatoriFanClub: Pav is… Pav is a creep basically haha. In a place like Tessler "friends" are hard to come by, so it's more of a case that when Breha was at Tessler the first time around Pav was one person she could ensure was giving her true information and not merely lying to her. As for how Pav feels towards Breha, he found her interesting. I hope that helps explain things a little?**

 **To saramichellegellarfan1: Thank you for your review! Hope you enjoyed this chapter.**


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

"This is a stupid plan." Han grumbled.

"This was your plan." Breha shot back at him as the three ducked behind a collection of crates in the docking bay they'd snuck into. They'd waited until another race had begun before infiltrating Veeta's area. So far they'd managed to sneak through unnoticed but as they crept further into his sector that was going to become harder and harder to achieve.

"A plan that you changed – a lot." Han reminded her. Breha's head turned, ready to snap at her father when Chewie groaned and pushed past the pair. The large Wookie clamped a hairy hand around the mouth of one of Veeta's workers as they passed by the crates. There was a quick, muffled struggle as Chewie pulled the man backwards but the Wookie soon rendered the man unconscious. Chewie gave the two Solo's a pointed look as he retrieved a swipe card from the pocket of the unconscious man.

"We can debate my changes later, we need to move." Breha said before ducking out from behind the crates and moving swiftly down the corridor. Han watched her sneak forwards, slinking closely to the wall of the corridor. Only for a moment did Breha's dark curls suddenly appear to be two neatly rolled buns as he remembered meeting Leia for the first time. As quickly as the image passed in front of his mind's eye it disappeared and he followed after his daughter.

Chewie used the stolen swipe card to open one of the doors and Han's hand flew to the blaster at his side when the door opened and revealed they had come face to face with another one of Veeta's 'employees' – they were becoming more and more frequent as they ventured deeper and deeper into the gangsters area. As it turned out Han needn't have grasped his blaster. He watched with surprise as Breha's hands shot out quickly, once to the man's wrist, knocking him from grasping his blaster, then once sharply to the man's neck. She finished her flurry of movements by sweeping the man off of his feet with her leg and whipping him into a tight choke hold. Once he was unconscious Breha stood and dusted off her trousers, collecting the man's weapon and communicator.

"Learn that last time you were here?" Han asked with raised eye brows.

"Actually no." Breha replied airily as she dragged the unconscious man to hide him away from the main corridor. "I learnt that from Ben." She smirked. Han's eyebrows rose further as he looked down at the unconscious man.

"Huh." The smuggler nodded slowly. Breha ignored her father's reaction and quickly consulted the map Pav had given to them to double check their position.

"We're getting close now. The cell should be just up here." Breha whispered quietly as she resumed her position of leading them through the dark corridors.

She was crouched low against the cold metal of the corridor and dared to glance around the corner of the 'T' junction as subtly as she could manage. Just as she suspected Veeta had left only a single guard in front of Poe's cell, but there was no doubt in her mind that there were many others prowling around the corridors nearby. Turning to Han she used her index finger to communicate how many guards there were. He nodded his understanding. Breha took a bolt from her pocket and threw it down the other side of the 'T' junction.

The guards head shot up at the sudden noise down the other end of the corridor. He shifted his blaster cautiously in his arms glancing around the corridor before slowly approaching the source of the noise. He was too slow to react as he passed the junction of the corridors and Han tackled the man to the floor. Breha was quick to kick the blaster away from the guard as her father worked to render the guard unconscious. Han was panting by the time the guard finally slipped unconscious. When he looked up Breha was already at the door to the cell, having swiped the entrance card from the guard Han was fighting with.

Breha had tried to prepare herself for seeing Poe. She knew Veeta, and knew how he worked. To prepare herself she tried to imagine the state she'd find her pilot in – how broken he would be. But nothing she had imagined could compare to actually seeing the beaten man hanging from energy shackles. All air seemed to stop moving in her chest and it was like she couldn't feel her entire body. It was pure instinct that drove her to enter the cell and rush to stand in front of Poe. His head hung forwards, resting against his chest. Being this close to him she could see the displacement of an obviously broken jaw. No doubt it was broken in an attempt to shut him up. Gentle fingers rose to the sides of Poe's face, avoiding the tender jaw. The man still groaned at the contact. There wasn't a part of him that didn't ache. Her eyes roamed over Poe's face, inspecting every displaced bone, every swollen piece of skin, every bruise, every cut, every trail of blood. Her gaze drifted downwards and she could only just make out the tail ends of silver tattoos, the majority of which were hidden underneath layers of blood and dirt. Bile rose in the back of her throat and seemed to burn all the way down to her stomach, clenching her heart in the process.

"Poe." She whispered softly.

The pilot had heard the door to his cell opening once again but he didn't have the strength in him to lift his head this time. He hurt all over but to even try to move now sent waves of excruciating pain shooting across his entire being. He could only hang there and wait for the next beating to commence. He had expected the first contact on his skin to be a sharp explosion of pain; so when two delicate hands took his head in their grasp surprise rocked through him. As delicate as they were though, even their touch caused enough pain to force a groan from his lips. It took his tired eyes a while to focus on the face in front of him. At first he was unnerved by the half concealed face but as soon as he found the person's unique pair of eyes all concern left his mind. He knew those eyes. Then she whispered his name and nothing had ever sounded so glorious.

"…Bre-" Poe tried to reply but his jaw felt like it was on fire.

"Shhh." Breha hushed, her fingers pushing deeper into his hair. "It's me." She assured him, pressing her forehead to his. "Your jaw is broken so don't talk. I'm here with Han and Chewie to bring you home." She explained. Poe didn't need to speak for Breha to see the relief and happiness in his eyes. Chewie whined quietly from Breha's left. She didn't want to look away from Poe but she forced herself to in order to double check that Chewie was ready to release Poe from the energy shackles. "We're going to let you down now." Breha warned Poe. His gaze hardened even more as he braced himself for what was sure to be a jolt of pain. Chewie released Poe's energy shackles and the pilot stumbled forwards. His legs were beaten and unused to baring his weight so they fumbled beneath him as he tried to stand. Breha, expecting as much, was quick to bare as much of Poe's weight as he needed her too in order to keep him upright. She could see the pained expression tear across his face, but all that left his lips was a muffled grunt as he forced himself to remain as quiet as possible. "I've got you." Breha assured him. Poe turned to face her, staring at her as if she wasn't real; staring at her like she was a hallucination his pain had induced. Poe raised a battered hand to the side of Breha's face and gently pulled the scarf down. The material was still high enough on her neck to hide the tattoos but it revealed enough of her features to cause Poe's heart to race. A blooded, grime covered hand cupped the side of Breha's face and the pilot found himself close to hysterical tears of relief. She was real. He could touch her. "I've got you." She repeated more firmly, placing her hand over his.

A loud roaring cheer pulled Breha and Poe's attention from each other. Breha swallowed thickly, a cheer that loud meant the race and battle for parts had ended early. Veeta's area was about to become a whole lot busier.

"We need to move." Han stated. He looked back to Poe and Breha, his stomach turning oddly at the way the pilot caressed his daughters face. "Now." Breha nodded at him.

"Can you walk?" She asked Poe. He responded by unhooking his arm from around her shoulders and trying his legs with all of his weight. Having had time to get used to standing they could bare his weight – albeit painfully. Breha took his stance as a yes and handed him the blaster she'd taken from the guard earlier. She was just about to step forwards when Poe grasped her bicep. Her brow furrowed in concern as she watched him struggle to speak through the pain of his jaw.

"M-maya." He managed to utter hoarsely. An uncomfortable knot formed in Breha's stomach but she pushed it down and out of her mind – forcing her focus back on the man in front of her.

"Maya?" Breha repeated to make sure she'd heard him correctly. "She's important?" Poe managed a small nod.

"Come on we need to move." Han whispered harshly from the door, he and Chewie were itching to leave as soon as possible. The four left the cell in a hurry, back tracking through the corridors they'd entered through. They didn't get very far before Han raised his hand and pulled them off of their planned exit route and down another corridor. Veeta's associates were returning and were blocking off their exit route. The four ducked into a supply room and Han turned to Breha, she already had the map out to consult. A firm frown pulled at Han's lips and an identical frown would have been visible on Breha's lips had she not pulled the scarf back over her face.

"We need to get back to the ship." Breha said quietly. "We won't go unnoticed for much longer." As if on cue a rushed voice erupted from the stolen communicator at Breha's waist alerting everyone that the prisoner had escaped and that all of the exits were to be sealed. Breha hissed a string of curses.

"There's got to be a way out of here." Han growled as he pulled the map closer to him.

Breha was the first to hear a noise from outside of the supply room. She placed a hand on her father's arm to silence him as her eyes indicated towards the door. Han nodded once and quickly ordered Chewie to watch over Poe as Han followed quietly behind Breha as she crept towards the door. The door opened and Breha was on the person within moments. Grabbing them by their small shoulders and tripping them to the floor. Han quickly closed the door behind the intruder double checking that there was no one else heading their way. Before Breha could capitalise on her opponent being on the floor they had kicked up from the floor and aimed a solid kick to Breha's side. Breha grunted at the impact, even with her arm raised to block the kick. With a low growl she grabbed the leg she'd been kicked with and pulled her opponent off balance.

Poe peered around the large back of Chewie, annoyed that he was being side lined. His eyes widened as he saw Breha being slammed head first into the wall by a smaller, dark skinned assailant. Breha whipped around, eyes wide and wild as fresh blood trickled down the side of her face. Breha's attacker was taken by surprise as Han grasped her from behind and held her steady. A dangerous glint passed over Breha's eyes as she drew one of her blasters and pointed it square at the attacker's head. All movement in the supply room seemed to stop then. Breha leant forward and pulled the high collar of the attacker's black shirt down to reveal the lower half of her face. The young attacker stared at Breha with large brown eyes, a bruise already forming on their cheek. Breha's gut clenched as her opponent's face was revealed – she was just a kid.

Poe's eyes narrowed as he finally saw the identity of the attacker. He pushed passed Chewie causing the Wookie to moan and stood in front of the attacker. Breha looked at him confusedly as her blaster was now pointed at Poe. It took only a moment longer for her to realise what Poe was trying to convey.

"What's your name kid?" Breha asked, her eyes didn't leave Poe. She could see relief flood his brown eyes at her question. The girl didn't speak for a moment, eyeing the back of the man in front of her with a hope she almost didn't dare risk. Could it really be him? "Your name?"

"Maya." She whispered quietly. Breha exhaled slowly, closing her eyes and lowered her blaster, securing back in its holster. She glanced back up at Poe, and whilst his jaw was too painful to smirk that didn't stop the smirk from reaching his eyes.

"You can let her go." Breha said to Han. He looked down at the girl in his grasp unsurely but trusted his daughter's judgement. At the same time Han released her Poe turned around. Maya's face lit up into a grin as soon as she saw Poe's face.

"Talis." Maya exhaled, using Poe's cover name, as she quickly covered the distance between them and hugged him tightly. Her little arms were thrown around his neck.

"Who's the kid?" Han asked with a furrowed brow as he stood next to Breha. Breha shrugged her shoulders.

"Someone important enough for a man with a broken jaw to utter her name." She replied. Han raised an eyebrow. "Come on, we still need to get out of here." She nodded her head towards Chewie and the map. Han ran a hand over his jaw – this was not how he expected this rescue to go.

"Do you guys have a ship?" Maya asked as she and Poe joined them around the map. Breha, Han and Chewie shared uneasy glances. Maya may know Poe but she was far from trustworthy. Breha looked down as a warm hand grasped hers firmly. She looked up to the face of the owner of the hand and was met once again by Poe's imploring look. She sighed.

"This would be so much easier if you could talk." She hissed, amusement filled his eyes. Breha narrowed her eyes on Maya. "Yes we have a ship. It's over in the Western sector."

"We'll never get out that far." Maya frowned.

"Never say there's something I can't do. You've obviously never met me." Han replied with a frown. Maya looked at him startled before crossing her arms over her chest.

"Don't assume that I was finished." She huffed causing both Breha and Han to raise an eyebrow in unison and Chewie to snigger. "We don't have to risk trying to get to the Western Sector. If we can get to Veeta's docking bays the _Nexus_ is parked up there." Breha's eyes widened at Maya's news.

"Where?" She asked before Han could retort. Maya swallowed at the intensity of the older woman's gaze but pointed on the map. "We can get there." Breha smirked.

"You know a lot about Veeta's area?" Han asked suspiciously. Maya pulled down the high neck of her black shirt to reveal a single silver tattoo on the centre of her chest, level with her collar bones – Veeta's mark.

"I ought to." Maya said simply. Breha's eyes lingered on the tattoo. Thankfully that seemed to be the only tattoo Maya bared. Forcing herself to look away, Breha turned off the hologram and shoved the small device into her pocket.

"We need to move." She said simply. "The kid comes with us." She added as she passed Han and Chewie. Breha paused as she went to pass by Maya. "That's assuming you want to?" Maya looked up at the woman with owlish eyes, glancing briefly to Poe before nodding.

It was Breha who led them through the corridors this time sacrificing some stealth for speed. Their group was now five large so stealth was going to be an issue however slowly they went. It was almost as if luck was on their side for a short while as they got closer and closer to the _Nexus_. Unfortunately that luck ran out and the group soon found themselves been shot at as they ran through the corridors and ducked into Veeta's docking bays. Breha had never been so happy to see the _Nexus_ in her life as the ship came into view. The emotion was cut short as a laser blast passed close to her head. She was quick to throw herself behind a smaller craft for cover, Maya also squeezing behind the same cover. Breha quickly glanced around and was relieved to see Chewie and Poe taking cover together. Her eyes then sought out her father who was ridiculously sprinting towards the control panel. Breha cursed him under her breath before glancing down at Maya.

"Get Chewie and P-Talis and get into the _Nexus"_ She ordered simply.

"What about you?" Maya asked wide eyed.

"I'll be right behind you." She replied, glancing at Han concernedly, before peaking over the top of the craft and firing both of her blasters. "Move kid." She repeated when Maya hadn't moved. Blinking away her surprise Maya ducked out from behind the craft, trusting Breha's keen shot to cover her. As she approached Chewie and Poe she called to them to head to the _Nexus._ Poe's eyes widened as Maya sprinted towards him leaving Breha alone. He didn't have much say in the matter though as Chewie hoisted him to his feet and practically dragged him towards the _Nexus._

Han finished at the console, the dock door beginning to open and the lock on the _Nexus_ being released. He ducked as another shot hit the metal wall near him and he dived behind the closest cover he could find. Glancing around, he saw Breha a little way in front of him covering him. Han shot at the attackers from his cover as he tried to spot the other three in their group. Panic rose in his chest when he couldn't find them only to quickly fade away as the _Nexus_ ignited. 

As Breha continued to fire her blasters at the seemingly endless swarm of Veeta's goons she was relieved to hear the familiar sound of the _Nexus_ igniting.

"Breha let's go!" Han shouted. Breha glanced over her shoulder to see her father sprinting from his cover towards the _Nexus,_ still firing his blaster as he ran. She was on her feet and sprinting in a matter of moments. Joining her father's side as they ran to the _Nexus_. The pair made it onto the ship after a few near-miss shots from enemy blasters. Breha slammed her palm on the button to close the _Nexus_ doors.

"Get to the cockpit." She said simply to her father before turning and heading to one of the gunner positions. "And tell someone else to man the other gunner." She called over her shoulder. Breha reached the gunner position and threw herself into the chair. She yanked the scarf down from her face and pulled on the headset all whilst flicking the necessary switches in front of her. Once her gun was turned on Breha began firing at the line of Veeta's men, the _Nexus_ gun proving to be much more powerful than her blaster.

"Talis!" An all too familiar voice bellowed from outside. Breha's trigger finger froze as she stared out of the window of the gunner position and laid her eyes on the imposing form of Tut Veeta, heavily armed with a large blaster. He hadn't changed at all. He was a tall, broad figured man built of pure muscle. And if his stature wasn't enough to terrify you, the harsh bone structure of his face, glowering eyes and wild mane like black hair would. As she sat there staring at Veeta a rapidly rising heat of anger seemed to start in her feet before consuming her entire being. When it reached her head all she saw was red and the urged to pull the trigger caused her finger to twitch.

A gut wrenching cry rang out from Breha's headset pulling her from her anger haze just in time to see a single shot fired from the _Nexus_ ' _s_ second gunner position. The laser hit Tut Veeta square in the chest exploding the man from existence. Breha's eyes widened and jaw dropped as shock numbed her entire being. She just about managed to register the sobbing she could hear over the headset.

The _Nexus_ lurched beneath her as the freighter finally left the dock. In comparison to the war zone they'd encountered in the docking bay flying away from Tessler was peaceful. There were a few ships blocking there path, but nothing that the skilled flying of Han Solo and the sharp shooting of his daughter couldn't evade. The _Nexus_ hummed beneath her as she felt the ship's hyperdrive ignite. She stared angrily at the base before the pin point stars blurred into streaks and the _Nexus_ jumped to hyperspace.

For a moment, no one moved, no one spoke. All that could be heard was the quiet sobbing of whoever was in the second gunner position. Breha swallowed thickly as she pulled the headset from her head and placed it on the side. Her head had logically worked out who had taken the second gunner, she just hoped she was wrong. She slowly climbed down the ladder and entered the main corridor of the ship. Breha looked to her left first, seeing Han and Chewie emerging from the cockpit. She turned her head to peer down into the second gunner position and her heart ached in her chest.

Poe sat on the floor of the gunner position, his entire body being used to cradle Maya into him as she sobbed into his tattered shirt. He slowly stroked her black hair and soothingly ran his ran in circles on her back. Glancing up he saw Breha peering down at them sadly.

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

 **APOLOGIES! – I can only apologise for the delay in posting this chapter! I had no intention of it being this long. Between me being ill and this chapter taking ages to edit time just seemed to speed on by. Thank you to everyone who had been patient enough to wait for this update and a MASSIVE thank you to everyone who reviewed, each review is a big encouragement to continue writing. Xx**

 **On another note. Holy cr*p! Over 100 reviews! I never expected the amount of support and encouragement this fic has received when I started** _ **Namesake**_ **. I want to thank everyone who has viewed this fic, followed and/or favourited and I especially want to thank everyone who was reviewed! Your reviews do honestly encourage me to write and edit chapters. I can only hope that the next lot of chapters are as well received as they last few! Xx**

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

 **To Marly4077: Hay welcome to** _ **Namesake**_ **. It's always wonderful to hear from new readers! I hope you enjoyed catching up and I'm so glad that you like Breha and her interaction with Poe :D I can assure you that it doesn't normally take me this long to update!**

 **To Junjunyil: I hope you're just as happy with this chapter as you have been with the others! I too am glad for Poe to be back. I've missed him :D And this chapter was very action, not a lot of time to process feelings so there are a lot of conversations that need to be had.**

 **To NicoleR85: Thank you once again for reviewing! I hope you enjoyed this chapter!**

 **To Heroherondaletotherescue: Hmm, deep conversations about the tattoos are definitely on the horizon so all will be revealed soon. And yes! Poor Poe! But thankfully he's back where he belongs :D and I'm glad that you liked the line, it'd been rattling around my head since I plotted for Poe to be held captive haha.**

 **To Bluedog02: GAH! Such incredible praise! I mean to write your OC well is one thing, but for someone to say that you write cannon characters** _ **in**_ **character is waaay beyond that. Like I squealed a little at your review haha. I can only apoligise for making you wait to read this chapter!**

 **To Katerinaki: Yay! I'm glad you like the tattoos. I actually took inspiration from the tattoo iconography used in certain gangs around the world and the more I read up on it the more it seemed like the kind of thing that would happen at Tessler… And yeah… there was 'trouble' haha.**

 **To XCV: Thank you for your review. I'm so pleased that the Tessler races have gone down so well. It's always a bit nerve-wracking to introduce something like that to a universe as intricate as the Star Wars universe.**

 **To feelthatfire: Poe's mouth is too smart for his own good haha. I'm glad that you like the tattoos! And Breha definitely does have a VERY dark past… Her semi-mental break down in the earlier chapters is definitely understandable! Sorry for the wait on the update!**

 **To marflark: I'm so glad that you like the fic and thank you so much for your praise! I hope you enjoyed the latest chapter!**

 **To saramichellegellarfan1: Super creepy!**

 **To cerileneross: Awwww! I have a very soft spot for L4 as well! And wow! Laughing out loud is incredible praise. Thank you so much. Hmmm, Ben's neglect was one of the harder aspects of the plot to get straight in my head but to hear to commend it is excellent :D I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I can only apologise for the delay on this chapter but you review really did help kick my butt into action and finish editing this chapter!**

 **To Mistyrosebleue: Yes! Poor Poe indeed! Breha's past is interesting indeed. And I'm glad you liked Han's protective fatherly side I've been dying to write it since he appeared in the fic haha**

 **To the Guest from 17/3/16: Thank you for your short but sweet encouragement!**

 **To SecretKeeper33: Welcome to** _ **Namesake!**_ **I love hearing from new readers! I'm so glad that you like the pre-TFA aspect of the story (I definitely do as it gives me more creative freedom!). And don't worry whilst they are no longer on Tessler there are still many conversations that need to be had and everything will be explained :) I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I swear it doesn't normally take me this long to update.**


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

 _3 Months Ago._

 _Location: The Tessler Races_

Maya was frozen to the spot, mouth agape, eyes glued to the large projection of the race. The central dock was an organised chaos. Multiple projections showed the racers and vultures at different angles but her eyes never left one screen – never left one racer. Around her most of Tessler had crammed into the central dock. The crowd were rowdy, almost rioting as an unknown, un-associated pilot battled for the lead in the race. The bookies were going insane at the turn of events the odds changing wildly. Maya flinched as the favourite for the race smashed into an asteroid. There were men around her who cursed in anger and through bottles at the projection.

Six racers had started the race – there were now three. The remains of the other three ships were splattered across the side of asteroids. All three racers cursed in their respective cockpits as a seismic charge detonated forcing the asteroids to accelerate dangerously. They all saw it. The asteroids were closing in, forming a narrow gap between the three racers and the finish line. The first racer tried to pass through the gap but the asteroid rotated on its axis revealing a large rise in the rock. It was too late for the pilot to react and the racer smashed headfirst into the asteroid. The force of the collision slowed the rotation of the asteroid enough to allow the other two pilots to pass through the gap. The final two racer were then neck and neck, racer scratching racers as they rocketed towards the finish line.

A shaky breath passed from his lips as Poe seemed to lose all awareness of his limbs. He actually had to look down at his hands to make sure they were still gripping the controls of the Tessler racer. His tight grip hid the adrenaline induced tremor he was sure would be present if he was to release his grip. His eyes rose from the cockpit and stared out at the course he'd just completed. The asteroids were still moving dangerously as a result of the seismic charges, reminding Poe how close he had come to crashing into one only moments before. Glancing around he realised that he had been the only one to cross the finish line. The racer that had been on his tail - the racer that had almost forced Poe into an asteroid – was nothing more than ruined scrap on the side of a rock. From his racer Poe had a front row seat of the vultures in their enviro-suits battling each other on the side of the asteroid. It became apparent that there was something worth fighting over as three vultures circled around a single aspect of the ship before engaging each other in a vicious display of blaster fire and acrobatics.

Poe calmed his breathing and flexed his fingers, he was in too deep to back out now. Everything had been set to change the instant he'd set off from the start line. Before the race he'd been nothing more than a low life in the Dregs. He'd taken advantage of his anonymity to listen and spy - he'd used it to meet and get closer to Maya. That anonymity had just been destroyed however, Talis was no longer a shadow in the Dregs. He'd gained all of the information he could from Maya, Poe had realised a week ago that if he was to learn anymore he'd have to get closer to the source. He had to get closer to Tut Veeta.

He landed the racer in the large dock of the central sector. Mayhem surrounded his ship. It had been years since a racer, not associated with a faction, had won a race. Every faction had flooded into the central dock each eager to claim Poe. He watched from the cockpit for a moment as the smaller groups were beaten to the sides by the larger, stronger factions. He laid his eyes on the hulking frame of Tut Veeta and caught the gangster's eye.

Tut Veeta growled as he smacked a lesser ranked faction mechanic out of the way. The rest quickly understood the display and darted out of the way of the gangster and his followers. Veeta stopped a few metres from Poe's racer and stood tall, his signature large blaster strapped to his back.

Poe exited his racer and made sure to keep his gaze fixed on Veeta; he couldn't afford to show an ounce of fear around this man. The smirk on Veeta's lips grew as Poe sauntered towards him.

"I hear you're looking for a pilot." Poe held his chin high as he spoke, trying to compensate for almost foot height advantage Veeta had over him. Veeta's smirk turned feral.

"I'm always looking for pilots." He replied. His voice was low and seemed to rumble from his chest.

"Well, isn't it great for the two of us to meet then?" Poe grinned.

"Tell me, pilot. Why should I take you on?" Veeta narrowed his eyes on Poe. Poe raised an eyebrow and smirked at the gangster.

"You just saw me race. I think that answers your question." He replied simply with a cocky shrug of his shoulders. There was a tense moment of silence between the two men before Veeta barked out a rumbling laugh. He clasped a large, calloused hand on Poe's shoulder before pulling the pilot into a manly hug.

Maya watched from the side of Veeta's faction with growing dread. Fear had claimed her being the moment she'd realised Talis was racing. The obscure man from the Dregs who'd listen to her worries about Veeta, defended her from the brutes in the bars and looked out for her – the man she's come to care for – was risking his life. Her worry only continued to grow as she watched him agree to sign his life away to Veeta.

"Brat." Veeta's booming voice called snapping Maya's gaze from Talis as she realised her boss was talking to her.

"Yes Sir." Maya scrambled to stand in front of him, bowing her head so that she never met his eyes directly.

"Take Talis here to Mekka, get him officially welcomed." He ordered, flashing Poe a wolfish grin.

"Yes Sir," Maya nodded lowly, risking a glance up to Talis and Veeta to make sure the pilot was ready to follow her.

Veeta placed his hands on his hips and watched Talis thoughtfully as his new pilot left with one of his other followers. He didn't even look away as a figure in an enviro-suit landed next to him. The figure removed their helmet to reveal a shocking head of deep red hair that had been cut into a short Mohawk.

"Seems I missed all of the action." The red headed male stated off hand, using the back of his hand to wipe the sweat from his brow. Veeta chuckled lowly and turned to face his most highly accredited follower and currently the top ranked vulture at Tessler.

"Just expanding the organisation Acer." Veeta explained. The gangster's day was only getting better. The fact that Acer stood next to him meant that the red head had yet again won the competition for parts. "Anything of value?" He asked as the pair made their way out of the central dock and towards Veeta's area.

"I thought so, but when I actually got a closer look possibly not." Acer shrugged casually. "Did finally get a chance to get back at Maghul's vulture though." Acer smirked. Even if what he had retrieved turned out to be garbage the competition had given him access to the vulture that had caused the death of Veeta's previous pilot a few weeks ago.

"Good." Veeta hummed contently. The gangster had been itching to tear Maghul limb from limb since her vulture caused Veeta's old pilot to crash. Unfortunately, the pirate's had kept the peace leaving Veeta no choice but to settle things in the races. Veeta glanced over to the East where Maghul's base was set up and smirked as he saw the white haired woman glaring over at him. One of her followers was whispering in her ear, no doubt informing her of the death of her vulture. Veeta grinned over at her. Maghul growled angrily and punched her follower in order to vent her frustrations. Veeta exhaled happily and turned to Acer. "Today is a good day." He claimed, clapping his most loyal follower on the shoulder.

Poe swallowed the thickly as he followed Maya deeper into Veeta's area. Anticipation tingled throughout him. He was now deep in the inner politics of Tessler and finally in a position to begin reporting vital information back to the resistance, opposed to just reporting the rumours and leads Maya had unknowingly fed to him.

"One thing." Maya muttered pulling Poe from his thoughts. He looked down at the angry young girl as they entered into well-lit room. There was a single chair in the centre of the room with a table next to it littered with ink bottles and a large tattoo gun. "I asked you to do one thing." Maya growled. Poe smiled sheepishly down at her. She had indeed warned him away from Veeta many times.

"I know what I'm doing Maya." Poe tried to reassure her.

"So you know you're being an absolute moron then?" She hissed in reply. Poe's brow furrowed as he watched anger flare across Maya's face; she reminded him a lot of Breha in that moment.

"So you're the newbie." A female voice sighed tiredly as she entered the room. Poe turned to look at her, assuming the blonde haired woman was Mekka the tattooist when she walked straight past him and pulled on her gloves. "Take a seat." She waved casually towards the chair. Mekka herself took a seat on a small stool. "You can go girl." Mekka dismissed Maya with a stern glare. Poe could see the distress in Maya's eyes but the young girl only hesitated for a moment before leaving the room. With Maya gone Mekka turned back to preparing her tattoo gun. "You'll need to remove your shirt." She informed Poe as he went to sit on the chair.

A shirtless Poe sat down on the chair and he used the time to observe the woman in front of him. Skilled hands prepared the gun but it was the black ink that covered her skin that truly showed how talented in her craft she was. His eyes followed the black lines up her neck, to her face, to how they surrounded her eyes. Mekka suddenly looked up, now armed with a tattoo gun and met his gaze with her icy blue eyes.

"Hi, I'm Talis." Poe grinned charmingly.

"That's nice." Mekka rolled her eyes.

"Just thought we could get to know each other before you come at me with needles." Poe shrugged. Mekka raised an eyebrow at him.

"Let me explain something to you." Mekka began as she narrowed her eyes. "I get two types of people sitting in that chair: the ones I tattoo once and the ones I tattoo a hundred times. And the likelihood is, is I'm going to tattoo you today and you're going to be dead this time next week." She explained casually. "So I make it a point to only begin using names after about the 10th tattoo." Poe blinked in surprise at her before a smirk claimed his lips.

"I guess I'll just have to reintroduce myself when I come for my 11th tattoo then." Poe replied easily. Mekka shook her head in disbelief at the man in front of her before exhaling and bringing the tattoo gun closer to Poe's tanned skin.

"This is going to hurt." She said simply before bringing the gun to his skin. Poe's eyes widened as the needle broken his skin and injected the ink. Hands clenched into fists as it felt like acid was being forced under his skin. "A lot."

"You don't say. Thanks for the advance warning." Poe grunted causing Mekka's lips to quirk upwards for the first time since Poe had met her.

It took about 30 minutes for Mekka to mark Poe's chest with Veeta's signature and the evidence of his first win at the races. She was actually quite impressed with his resolve throughout the process, the first tattoo was always the most painful. Once she was finished she placed a dressing over his chest and gave him some brief instructions on how to care for the tattoo. But due to the nature of the ink used it was almost impossible to damage the tattoo once it was in place.

"Well it's been a pleasure." Poe said sarcastically as he got up from the chair and picked up his shirt. He didn't put his shirt back on since his chest felt like it was on fire and he really didn't want the fabric of his shirt rubbing against it. Mekka simply ignored him as she turned back to her equipment table and began tidying away used items and setting up with fresh ones. As Poe left the tattoo room he crossed paths with a shirtless man around his age with a red Mohawk and an upper body that was covered in silver tattoos.

Acer walked straight past Poe, barely acknowledging him, before entering the tattoo room.

"You got time for me, Mekka?" Acer asked. The blonde looked up and smiled at the vulture.

"For you Acer, always." She motioned with her hand towards the vacated chair.

"What do you think of the newbie?" Acer asked as he held out his left forearm for Mekka.

"Cocky shit." She replied bluntly without hesitation causing Acer to smirk. "So if he survives he'll fit in fine." She added as she raised her eyes to meet Acer's. The smirk faded from Acer's face and he nodded, a thoughtful pout pulling at his lips as he thought about the new pilot. He barely even noticed as Mekka brought the needles to his skin, his body was too used to the ink now to experience the pain the new pilot will have just felt. "You look like a true piece of art Acer." Mekka commented, acknowledging the other tattoos that decorated the mechanic's skin.

"Compliment your own work why don't you." Acer rolled his eyes. Mekka grinned cheekily.

"You are my masterpiece." She agreed. Acer had been the first person she'd ever tattooed after finishing her apprenticeship under Veeta's previous tattooist; he was also the person she'd tattooed the most. "Could rival even Ghal's work." She smiled fondly at the thought of her old teacher.

"Ghal was the tattooist here before you right?" Acer asked. Mekka nodded. "What happened to him?" Mekka sighed.

"Disappeared into the Dregs about the time you joined us." She said. Mekka looked up and caught Acer's questioning look. She sighed. "There was a woman here, before you joined Veeta." She began. "And she was incredible – Ghal made her incredible. The tattoos on her skin were perfection and he became obsessed with it. So when she left, he just didn't cope. Veeta kicked him out pretty quick after that."

"You're talking about Relik aren't you?" Acer asked. Mekka looked up at him in surprise. Her name was rarely uttered in Veeta's area anymore. Veeta had made every effort to forget the one that got away from him. The gangster grew irrationally angry at the mere memory of his ex-vulture, the one that made a mockery of him. But Mekka shouldn't have been surprised that Acer had managed to find out about her; she was his predecessor after all and he was one of the most street smart people Mekka knew. She nodded. Acer looked away from her, a thoughtful expression once again claiming his face as Mekka returned to working on his forearm.

Since being forced out of the tattooing room Maya had paced Veeta's area anxiously. Her hand rose to rub over her own tattoo knowing the pain Talis would be experiencing and as angry as she was at him for ignoring every warning, she couldn't not help him.

Poe was gripping a counter in the bunk room he'd been assigned. The pain in his chest only seemed to intensify with every moment. He was so distracted by the pain he almost didn't notice the door to his room being opened. Maya entered the room her eyes looking over Talis. He was almost doubled over as he gripped the counter tightly, a thin layer of sweat covering his skin. The young girl closed the door behind her and quickly made her way to Talis's side. From her pocket she pulled a small pot of light purple salve.

"You're an idiot." She muttered with a pout as she dipped her fingers into the salve and smoothed it over Talis's tattoo. Poe closed his eyes as the relief was almost immediate.

"Thank you." Poe murmured. He opened his eyes and looked down at Maya. "I know you said to stay away from Veeta, but I know what I'm doing Maya." He assured her.

"Really? Because the way I see it you were a free man and now you've just tide yourself to a monster." She retorted. For a brief moment Poe wished he could tell Maya everything, why he was there, who he was – that he could help her. If anyone deserved his help it was her. He was almost one hundred percent certain she'd side with him and the resistance if he told her, Veeta had after all taken everything from her. But he couldn't risk it.

"At least you know you're stuck with me." He tried to lighten her mood.

"Unless you get yourself killed." She snapped. "Pilots around here have a tendency to do that."

"That won't happen." He assure her. Maya's mouth hung open incredulously. "I'm the best pilot there is." He grinned. Maya grunted in frustration at the man in front of her, pushing his shoulder in annoyance. Poe's amused grin faded from his face as he saw Maya's eyes filling with tears. "Maya." He spoke seriously, she looked up at him.

"I-" She swallowed the lump in her throat. "I've not got anyone else Talis." She admitted quietly. "I lost them to Veeta."

"Well you're stuck with me." He assured her.

Over the next month or so Maya began to believe the promise Talis made to her that night. He got closer to Veeta, he went out and raced; but he always came back to her. However, like everyone who'd ever been close to her the moment came when it was ripped away from her. She'd over-heard Veeta and Acer discussing Talis and doubting him. Panic had struck her heart immediately. Veeta didn't work on doubts, not with the people closest to him. So if he had reason to doubt Talis, Maya had to get Talis out of Tessler as soon as possible.

She'd run to Talis in a panic. Bursting into his room, waking him up and literally pulled him from his bed. She'd tried to protect him, really tried as she explained the danger he was in. But a knock sounded at Talis's door before they could leave. He quickly locked the door and turned to Maya. It was then that Talis whispered to her words that would turn her world upside down.

"Maya listen to me." He leant close to her face. "My real name isn't Talis, I'm with the resistance and I'm here investigating Veeta." He said in a rush. Maya's eyes widened and she felt an unbelievable warmth spread throughout her chest. "They're going to take me and I need your help." But before Talis could explain anymore to her the two heard the sounds of them forcing the lock. They were out of time. "You need to leave." He said. Talis then lifted Maya so that she could reach the vent on the ceiling. She was still just small enough to fit through the gap. She climbed into the vent and helped Talis replace the covering. They'd just replaced the covering when the lock on the door broke and Veeta's men flooded into Poe's room. Maya could only look on in horror as they beat her friend beneath her.

Maya had run away from Veeta that night, disappearing into the Dregs of the Western sector. Since she was nobody to them her absence wasn't even registered by the gang.

She was hopeless – useless. Once again she could do nothing to help those closest to her. She only dared to risk a spark of hope when her eyes landed on Han Solo, his masked friend and Chewbacca.

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

 **Sooooo a Poe-centric chapter.**

 **To JunJunyil: Yay! So glad you enjoyed how I wrote the action sequences! I had a great deal of fun writing them. They just take ages to edit! Unfortunately no Breha and Poe in this chapter but I've been dying to do a Poe centred chapter since I started this fic! WOW! Holy cr*p that is incredible praise to even put my concept of the Tessler races in the same sentence as the Star Wars cannon Gah! Thank you x**

 **To cerileneross: Glad that you liked the chapter! And yeah… I hated writing about in injured Poe :( It's also great to hear that I'm still writing Ben's neglect at a believable pace… I can definitely see this aspect of the fic being one of the more difficult aspects to write as we get deeper into the plot. But to know that I'm on track now is reassuring!**

 **To heroherondaletotherescue: Lovely to hear that you loved the chapter and all the feels :D Oooh! So many questions… okay so: as for who Maya is and why Poe cares about her that's been expanded a bit in this chapter but there is definitely more to be explained. And Maya's relationship to Veeta as well as Breha's will be revealed. Author's promise. I hope you enjoyed this chapter!**

 **To Delaria: Thank you for your review! And there was plenty of new in this chapter. New character overload.**

 **To Queenie23: Thank you for your review I hope you enjoyed this chapter.**

 **To An Echo In Time: I had the same flashback! I was sat there editing the chapter and it hit me haha. Really glad that you enjoyed the chapter.**

 **To saramichellegellarfan1: No Breha in this chapter so hard for them to kiss. Afraid I'm going to be annoying and not answer the question directly because spoilers… But I will say that I'm trying to make this fic as believable as possible (which has resulted in a slow-burn) so if it's believable that Poe and Breha are close to kissing… well…**

 **To Bluedog02: Wow! Thank you X That is incredible praise! And poor Poe! And don't fear! Like I said to Saramichellegellarfan1 I'm trying to make this fic as believable as possible (which has resulted in a slow-burn) so if it's believable that Poe and Breha are close to kissing… well… coughhintcough haha. Really happy to hear you like the tattoos, that whole aspect of the culture has been expanded on a little more in this chapter so I hope you enjoyed it.**

 **To thebeezekneeze: (such an awesome pen name – just saying) and thank you for the review! Sorry for the wait!**

 **To marflark: Not quite the aftermath of the races but I hope you enjoyed the chapter!**

 **To DD: Yay! Thank you so much! I hope you enjoyed this chapter!**

 **To the Guest from the 29** **th** **: Thank you for the 'kick-up-the-arse-finish-the-chapter' review! Hope you enjoyed the chapter.**


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

Ben and Leia felt them as soon as they dropped out of hyperspace into the system of planets.

Relief. It consumed him the moment he felt their presence. It was all Ben could feel as the force let him feel the strong, uninjured presence of both his father and sister. Relief soon turned to elation as he all but ran from his bedroom to the secluded landing strip. He skidded around the hanger door to the open air of the landing field and faltered when he saw his mother and a team of medics already waiting for the ship that had now entered the atmosphere. Had he been wrong? Reaching out with the force again he found Breha and his father easily; he exhaled relief as he confirmed for certain that both were fine. Frowning, he could now feel the presence of three others rather than two.

The ship touched down on the tarmac with the doors having begun to open even when the ship had the last few feet to descend. Chewie's large frame was the first they saw but it quickly became apparent that he was supporting a very battered Poe Dameron. Leia's chest tightened. In the short time her charming young commander had been with them she'd come to hold him quite dearly. It also didn't escape her notice that he and her daughter were growing closer. How close she wasn't sure. Hell, they probably weren't sure. Han exited the ship a few paces behind Chewie and whilst he looked scruffier than usual, Leia was relieved to see him uninjured. It took until Chewie was at the bottom of the ramp for Breha to become visible behind him. Her head only just poked above the towering Wookie. Chewbacca shifted to the side as he made his way with Poe over to the awaiting medics and Leia's brow furrowed. There in Breha's arms was a small unconscious child – 13 at the oldest.

Han's eyes found Leia as soon as he left the ship next to his daughter. He saw the frown of her brow immediately and followed her gaze to Maya.

"You're explaining the stray to your mother." He said quickly to Breha. Her head shot to him, mouth open to retort, but the man had quickened his step down the shallow ramp to avoid her verbal backlash.

"Ass." She muttered with narrowed eyes. With a sigh she glanced down at the dark skinned girl in her arms, eyes softening slightly.

Kit met her at the bottom of the ramp, Ben not too far behind him. Without even questioning who the girl was they both immediately began to help Breha transfer the girl onto a bed.

"Her name's Maya." Breha said as Kit pulled out a hand held device and began to scan Maya.

"Unconscious?" He asked.

"Sedated." Breha corrected. Kit looked up from Maya to look at Breha with raised eyebrows.

"She was quite… hysterical… it was best for her." Breha explained. Kit nodded before turning to the other medics around Maya.

"Let's get these two to medical." He ordered. Kit went to walk alongside Maya's bed but Breha's hand found his wrist and held him gently in place.

"Kit, don't wake her. Not just yet." Breha said lowly. His dark brows furrowed but he wasn't going to get any more of an explanation, not right at that moment at least. But he trusted her judgement. He nodded to Breha and she released his wrist. Her gaze then immediately fell to Poe. He'd been forced to lay on one of the beds as they transported him but his head was turned to her, dark eyes met hers and a warm wave washed over her. He was back – alive. She wanted to follow him. Oh she desperately wanted to be by his side. He was in pain, and whilst he didn't admit to it, hell he refused analgesic when she'd offered it. She could see the tenseness and guarding in every move he made. She wasn't even aware that she was that used to his usual flow of movement. Until it changed and suddenly it was the most obvious thing in the world.

She almost thought to screw protocol and follow after Poe anyway, but a set of arms wrapped around her and pulled her into a hug. Stunned for a fraction of a second she looked down to see a familiar head of black curls pressing into the crease between her neck and shoulder – Ben. She exhaled heavily and wrapped her arms tightly around her younger brother relishing the warmth that washed over her.

"I'm glad you're back." He murmured quietly.

"Me too." She whispered with a smile. Ben let go of her. But she was out of the hug for only moment before she found herself in another one; this time by her mother. Leia leant back and clasped her daughter's face in her hands, smiling at her fondly. _Me too._

Knowing that Breha would have to speak to the General in depth Han approached Ben, smiling down at the boy. Han placed a large hand on his head, ruffling his curls.

"Not as excited to see me huh?" Han joked. Ben stumbled over his words; his lower jaw seemed to fall slack as he looked up at Han. "Come on kid let me tell you all about it." He nodded his head away from the two women. Ben nodded hesitantly but looked back to Breha with large eyes. She smiled weakly at him.

"I'll come and find you." She promised him. She watched him and Han walk along the tarmac wistfully before her expression turned grave and she turned to her General. Leia noticed the change immediately and her already straight back straightened further. "We have a lot to discuss."

"We better go somewhere more private then." Leia replied, her lips pursed. It was late at night so the corridors were empty as the two women made their way to central command. There were two officers stationed in the command centre who saluted the General when she entered. She acknowledged their salute quickly and proceeded to lead the way across the room to the small meeting room. Their eyes soon fell to Breha as she followed after her mother, blinking in surprise. Sure, they'd seen Breha looking scruffy before she was a mechanic after all. But they'd never seen her armed.

The two women sat opposite each other. Breha leant forward and placed her arms on the dark table that separated them. From her pocket she pulled a small black device and slid it across to her mother.

"With the state of Poe's jaw we're not sure how long he'll be unable to speak." Breha began. "He insisted on recording the key details of his report before we arrived back." She couldn't help the small frown that pulled at her lips as she recalled the flight back.

It was just after she'd sedated Maya, having tried relentlessly to calm the girl. Breha had turned to Poe, reading another sedative. It wasn't as concentrated as the one she'd given to Maya, just enough to take Poe's pain away – albeit making him drowsy as a side effect. He'd placed a hand on her arm and stared at her with determined eyes – damn those eyes. Without a word he then sat down at the table and began jotting out the key details of his report. For a while she hovered over him, trying with frustration to persuade him to take the sedative. He'd just stared at her with those damn eyes again.

"Thank you," Leia said as she accepted the device. Breha exhaled.

"It was Poe's idea." She explained. Breha had been firmly against the idea, knowing full well that she'd be having this debrief session with her mother as soon as they landed. Reminding herself of that her back straightened and she met her mother's gaze firmly. Breha went on to recount the events of the mission itself which naturally led to Maya – the stray as Han so affectionately dubbed her. Leia's brow raised in mixture of intrigue and amusement.

"Poe spoke to an asset he was getting close to." Leia tried her best not to interrupt her daughter's recount. Yet she felt that information would help add to Breha's report.

"Hmmm, that was Maya he spoke of." Breha nodded. The mechanic then recounted to the general the important details of the time Poe and Maya spent together at Tessler – that mechanic having read Poe's report on the _Nexus_. Breha knew that her mother could simply read Poe's initial report. But his report lacked the explanation of how significant those developments were in Tessler culture. Breha could supply her with that insight.

"I didn't realise she was so young." Leia sighed once her daughter had finished. Breha shared her mother's frown, her fists clenching.

"There's worse news." Breha began. "Poe was imprisoned by Veeta because he was overheard enquiring about being-trafficking. Specifically, the trafficking of infants." Leia's eyes widened. "We know that the First Order doesn't have access to the clone factories." Horror and realisation swept over Leia in one swift blow. "Veeta wasn't just smuggling arms to the First Order – he was smuggling them soldiers."

Silence engulfed the two women like a thick fog. A fog so thick that Leia struggled to think through it as Breha's words resonated with her. Breha watched with concern as her usually sturdy mother faltered right before her very eyes.

"They're raising an army." Leia uttered quietly. Breha nodded slowly. Leia met her daughter's gaze, tired eyes that looked too aged to belong to her daughter. The General exhaled heavily. "I need to contact Admiral Ackbar." Leia voiced. Her Naval counterpart had been away from D'Qar for almost a year, having taken station on the _Echo of Hope_ \- a MC80 cruiser. In that time there had been very little the General needed to consult with the Admiral. They're correspondence was mainly just updates to keep the other informed. But with a development this significant, the Admiral may very well be returning to D'Qar sooner than he'd hoped.

"Poe has included some evidence in his initial report but he tells me there's more." Breha said. Leia nodded.

"You've done well Breha." Leia spoke softly.

"It wasn't me." Breha shrugged. "Poe and Maya are the ones who risked their lives. I'm just delivering a message." Leia could only smile at her daughter.

"I will be sure to thank them as well. Go and rest Breha." She dismissed her gently. Breha sent her a tired smile before rising from the table and leaving her mother alone in the room. Leia watched her daughter leave before casting her eyes down to the small device in her hands wondering just what her commander had unearthed.

As tired as she was, rest was not at the top of her list of priorities. Ben was. Or maybe Poe was. She couldn't be certain and she was too tired to try and work it out. All she knew was that her own quarters was the last place she needed to be. Despite the hour she made her way through the halls to her brother's bedroom, knocking quietly on his door. There was no reply. But noticing that the door was open she entered his room. The lights were off and it was only the pale light from the window that partially illuminated her sleeping brother. Ben was in a slumped seating position on his bed, an open book face down on his lap having fallen from his hands. Breha's chest warmed as she realised he'd tried to stay awake to see her. He just hadn't counted on her debrief taking so long. As quietly as she could she entered his room and took the book from his lap, placing it neatly in his desk. Pealing back the quilt, she then softly guided Ben down so that he was laying comfortably on his pillows, replacing the quilt over him when she was done. Breha stayed crouched by his bedside for a moment, her hand brushing a few curls from his forehead so that she could place a kiss against his skin. She stood from his side and removed the scarf that had been draped around her shoulders since the mission. Folding it, she placed it on his desk next to his book. At least that way he'd know she kept her promise to find him.

She left his room as quietly as she'd entered it and turned to make her way directly to medical. Breha knew that both Maya and Poe would be well looked after under Kit's care but she just couldn't shake the desire to rush to be by their sides. _His_ side.

As she walked through the corridors a tenseness began to consume her. On the way to Tessler her thoughts had been about getting to Poe. When she got to Poe her only thoughts were how to get him back to D'Qar. On the way back to D'Qar her thoughts were only on the report Poe was forcing her to take. Once back on D'Qar her thoughts were only on the debrief with her mother – then her brother. Now, where did her mind go now? With no objective, no distraction, her thoughts floundered and anxiety teased at the fringes of her mind.

The lights in medical were lower than usual when she entered, large shadows were cast out from the adjoining bays and offices that weren't in use. The shadows seemed to only highlight the lit, occupied bays more. Maya was closest to her. The young girl, changed into the standard medical top and trousers, was laid flat on the bed. Breha couldn't help but notice how peaceful she looked simply laying there. Knowing in the same moment how far from peace that the girl would be pulled when they woke her up. It wouldn't help that Maya would wake up surrounded by strangers. That was why Breha made the decision that the girl wouldn't be woken until Poe could be there to support her. She saw how the pair interacted at Tessler and she'd read Poe's report on how their friendship was formed. Maya would need him when the time came.

With her thoughts falling to Poe once again, her eyes naturally sought him out. She was moving to his bedside before she realised what she was doing. He too had been placed in standard medical clothes, only he lacked the top. His tanned chest was left exposed in order to allow a gel like substance – bacta - to cover the bruises and lacerations that littered his skin. Breha's breath caught in her throat as her gaze rose to his face. She knew his jaw was in a bad way; there were very few things that could shut the smart mouthed pilot up. But as she saw the lower half of his face fixed in place and covered with a large dressing it was like an icy hand had reached into her chest and squeezed her heart.

"I wondered when you'd show up."

Spinning around with wide eyes, Breha's hand naturally fell to the blaster on her right thigh. Her fingers only ghosted over the weapon, only stopping as she realised it was Kit who had snuck up on her. A shaky breath passed between her lips. Kit's brow rose and furrowed slightly at her reaction. Breha's eyes quickly turned back to Poe, watching the slow rise and fall of his chest.

"How-" Her voice cracked. Clearing her throat she continued. "How are they?" Kit's eyes narrowed as he couldn't help but look over her with a medically trained eye.

"Maya is fine - a little malnourished," he admitted. "But we're keeping her sedated for now." Breha nodded slowly.

"And Poe?" She asked quietly.

"His injuries were extensive." Kit began. Breha flinched; the icy hand was back. "He had multiple fractures, lacerations and bruising across his body. The fractures have been set; the lacerations debrided and bacta applied to accelerate the healing on all injuries." Kit explained concisely. Breha swallowed thickly, her eyes slowly rising from his chest to his wrapped jaw. "His jaw was broken." Kit said as he saw where Breha's gaze had shifted. "We sedated him before setting and fixing the jaw in place. To accelerate bone regeneration bacta extract was injected at the fracture sites as well as being applied superficially to the skin."

"… So he's going to be okay?" Breha asked after taking a moment to process Kit's information.

"Yeah Breha. Poe is going to be okay." Kit said softly. Once the words were said out loud, and not merely Breha's mind trying to persuade her, relief washed over her. She couldn't help it as her breath came in shaky gasps and her vision blurred. Kit noticed and was by her side in a moment, turning her to face him. He briefly caught sight of tear filled eyes before her head leant into his chest and her hands gripped at his sides. The medic blinked in surprise before slowly wrapping his arms around the smaller figure. He could feel her trembling. "He's going to be fine." Kit assured her quietly.

"I feared-" Her voice cracked.

"I know." Kit soothed, a gentle hand ran across her back comfortingly. He held her until her breathing calmed and her grip on his shirt loosened. "How are you Breha?" She pulled away from him.

"I'm fine," the words were out of her mouth before she realised what she was saying. Kit fixed her with a stern, knowing look. "I'm tired." She amended quietly. "And in need of stiches." She added. Kit's eyes narrowed. Breha pulled a section of hair away from the side of her face to reveal the laceration she'd received when Maya forced her into a wall. Kit's brow twitched in annoyance.

"You've been wandering around with a head trauma?" His tone quickly changed from comforting friend to chastising parent. He quickly guided her to the bay next to Poe's and began setting up. "What possessed you to ignore something like that?" He asked as he swiftly prepared the equipment he needed. He quickly turned to her, now sat on the bed. "Don't answer that." He said, her mouth clamped shut.

Kit was still grumbling when he took his place in front of her, scanning her before beginning to debride the wound. Admitting quietly that it wasn't too bad, no signs of concussion and just large enough to warrant a couple of stiches. Breha smiled softly at her friend's antics, finding comfort in the familiarity. Her eyes then found Poe over Kit's shoulder and her smile widened a bit more. There was more comfort to be found in knowing that he was going to make a full recovery.

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

 **Well that was a longer gap between chapters than I anticipated. I can only apologise. Between deadlines in real life and this chapter being a pain to edit the days just added up. I want to reassure people that I have no intention of abandoning this fic. There is a lot of plot planned out… I just need to find time to write it!**

 **JunJunyil: Oh my! Where to begin? Your review had my jaw dropping to the floor! I honestly can't describe the feeling when someone reacts so well to original characters :D And to say that you would buy this if it was a book is beyond incredible, thank you so much. As for the new characters I've introduced there's definitely a few in mind that I want to keep around/bring into later chapters. And I'm glad that you liked the Poe centric chapter… I was missing him as well haha**

 **To feelthatfire: There was your Poe chapter. I think we were both suffering from Dameron withdrawal haha. Once again thank you for your comment about the races. I'm genuinely can't believe the response the concept has received! I was 50:50 about including it as part of the story when I first began designing it. I wasn't too sure how something so large a concept would fit into the Star Wars universe haha. And yes! Poor Poe's jaw! Since this is Star Wars and they've proven they have the medical technology to replace limbs I don't think Poe will be wired shut and on a liquid diet for months… Good old bacta to save the day haha. And yes! More Poe and Maya to come…**

 **To KeepingThemAtBay: Haha, Acer is one tough MotherF. And yeah, if Breha and Acer were to actually meet things would not be pretty!**

 **To Delaria: Yay! So glad that you like Maya and Poe's relationship (there will be more of that) and that you love Tessler and the tattoos!**

 **To marflark: Unfortunately still not much Breha and Poe interaction… I was almost going to write a chapter where Breha was by Poe's bedside when they returned to D'Qar… but I realised quite quickly that Breha is too much like Leia to avoid her duty to the resistance like that. Which is why she ended up having a super tense meeting with her mother. And I'm glad that you like the slow-burn! I'm hoping that the gas turns up on that little flame soon!**

 **To Guest from the 31** **st** **March: Thank you for your review Sorry for the long wait! I hope you enjoyed this chapter.**

 **To SecretKeeper33: Thank you! I'm glad that you like the addition of Maya! And she's a little young for Poe romantically, but she definitely holds a lot of affection for him. And the first proper Breha/Maya scene should be interesting!**

 **To Bluedog02: Thank you, thank you, thank you! *little happy dance* I was a little apprehensive about writing a chapter that was essentially Poe surrounded by a load of original characters but you liked it so yay! And Oh my Sweet Lord… To say that you could see this as a movie!? Like I'm literally lost for words… that is some of the biggest praise I've ever received so THANK YOU! And I mentioned in the review above that I'm planning on cranking up the heat on the slow burn soon ;P but it is brilliant to hear that you're such a fan of it and that you ship Poe and Breha… Now we just need a ship name: 'Preha'? 'Boe'? 'Damerolo'? haha**

 **P.S – I'm glad that my review replies amuse you as much as your reviews amuse me X**

 **To the Guest from the 3** **rd** **April: Thank you so much! Slow burns can be hard to balance so I'm so happy to hear that you think I'm pitching it right!**

 **To cerileneross: Woo! Thank you! I think I was blushing a bit at your review haha. It's so good to hear that my characters and writing style are believable!**

 **To saramichellegellarfan1: Thank you!**

 **To HeartofBruce: Wow three reviews in one go! Thank you! So glad to hear that you like Breha's character! It's a thin line between a strong female lead and disastrous Mary-Sue so it's great to hear that from you!**

 **To the Guest from the 5** **th** **April: Thank you! I have no intention of abandoning this fic. I still have plenty of plot planned and ready to write… Just deadline in real life had to be prioritised. I hope you enjoyed this chapter!**

 **To COORAALL: Firstly, freaking awesome Pen name haha. And secondly, thank you! Wow as if you like this fic enough to read it more than once! Hold Cr*p haha. It's brilliant to hear that Breha is a good mix of Han and Leia – that was what I was aiming for haha. Hope you enjoyed this chapter**

 **To DArtagnan09: Woo! Another fan of the slow burn! Thank you so much! And there will be more of Maya to come! Author's promise.**

 **To splashofbi: Welcome to Namesake! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! It's great to get a fresh perspective of the fic and even better to hear that you love the concepts and back story! And score yet again for the slow burn supporters! Haha**

 **To Guest from the 11** **th** **April: Oh my God! I hope you're not in hospital for very long and that you feel better soon! Me and every character from Namesake are hoping that you feel better soon. I hope you enjoyed this chapter! X**


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

Leia pinched the bridge of her nose wearily and took slow breath through her nose. She'd just finished a long range communication with Luke and updated her brother on the developments of the First Order. His reaction had been much like hers when Breha had first told her. Luke had made the decision to return to D'Qar so he could be there as the Resistance planned how they would proceed. So now both Luke Skywalker and Admiral Ackbar (and crew) were returning to the resistance base. Her thoughts then turned to her unconscious commander; she hoped he could be woken up soon.

Kit looked up from the data pad in front of him as he heard the doors to medical opening. Glancing at the digital clock on the wall he figured it must be Breha. She was the only one to visit this early in the morning. From his office he could see the black haired woman stop by Maya's bed first. She picked up her chart and scanned over it before moving on to Poe, repeating the action for him. It had become a usual sight over the last few days for Breha to make an appearance in medical before her shift and check on Poe and Maya. Like the past few mornings Breha stayed for a few minutes with Poe before turning and silently leaving medical. Kit paused in his work and wondered why the other visitors couldn't be more like Breha. She came early in the morning; checked for any developments and then left. Opposed to the rowdy bunch of predominantly pilots, that descended on his otherwise peaceful medical department at random intervals throughout the day. Who knew the commander was that popular?

Silver eyes watched the young mechanic disappear out of medical and he chewed his lip thoughtfully. He had to admit it was nice to see Breha back in her mechanic clothes. The medic had witnessed how familiar she was with blasters at her side. He wasn't sure he was entirely comfortable with the fierceness she had kept hidden up until that point.

Breha sighed as she ran her hand up and over her forehead, pulling some loose curls of hair away from her face as she did. It had been three days since they'd returned from Tessler and whilst most things had returned almost immediately back to normal there were a few differences she was keenly aware of. The pilots were on edge. If they were on edge soon enough the entire base would be. The rumour mill had quickly spread that Poe had returned from a covert mission. With said pilot being laid up in medical it was hard to avoid that one. But it was the fact that no other pieces of information had been let slip that was frustrating the pilots. The fact that the infamous Han Solo was now also roaming around the resistance base didn't help the rumour mill either. Breha could only roll her eyes at some of the ridiculous theories she'd heard pilots claiming in the mess hall.

The young mechanic stopped by her workshop, sadly eyeing the unfinished BB unit. The orange and white spherical unit looked like a glorified desk ornament, doing nothing but gathering dust. Breha just couldn't bring herself to finish it. Turning away from the droid she snatched up the large stack of data pads on the side and retreated from her workshop.

She entered the mechanics meeting room, pleased to see the large group of people already dotted around the room. Suddenly a hot steaming beverage was held out in front of her whilst another hand offered to help her carry the stack of data pads. Breha raised a brow as an over enthusiastic Mareep tried to butter her up with coffee and helpfulness.

"Morning Boss. How are you today?" He smiled.

"What have you done?" Breha asked suspiciously. Mareep's mouth opened in a comedic look of shock and innocence.

"What makes you think I've done something?" Mareep asked his voice rising a few notes.

"Because you usually have." Iivan cut in as walked past the pair with his own coffee in hand.

"Ergh, not needed Iivan!" Mareep huffed. Breha stifled a chuckle at the face Mareep pulled at Iivan's back.

"Okay, what do you _want_ then?" Breha asked. Mareep's eyes flew back to her and she knew she'd asked the right question.

"Errr, could I swap with Lara and be on call for comms?" He asked. A smirk pulled at the corner of Breha's mouth. "I checked with her and she's fine with it. We just need you to sign off on it."

"Think you'll be able to focus on your work if you get called to comms?" She asked. Mareep blinked at her in confusion. "Jem?" At the mention of the man from communication's name Mareep's cheeks flushed.

"How did you?" He murmured quietly.

"Not a lot happens around here that I don't know about." Breha smiled warmly at him. "Don't kid yourself into thinking I missed the gooey eyes you two having been making at each other for almost half a year now." The colour of Mareep's cheeks darkened even more. "Question still stands though. Can you focus?" Mareep sobered quickly.

"Of course I can." He nodded.

"Then I have no problem." Breha replied easily. "Swap with Lara for today. Oh and thank you for the coffee." She added as she walked past him to the front of the room. It was actually quite beneficial to have Mareep switch to comms. His track record for tolerance towards the pilots wasn't fantastic and since the pilots were on edge recently; it was probably for the best to limit the time Mareep spent with them.

She took her position in front of all of the mechanics and a natural hush fell over the room; all eyes turned to face their commander. Like every morning she welcomed the mechanics to the briefing and began distributing the data pads to the relevant mechanic. Lara and Jak helped in order to hand out the data pads faster. The brief began with any general announcements or updates before moving onto targets for the sub-departments. Her talk was short and concise, just how the mechanics liked it.

"Any questions?" Breha finished. Her eyes scanned slowly over the room. When she was met with silence she nodded. "Alright then, have a good day everyone." Movement and chatter returned to the room as they filed out and made their way to the first jobs.

Ben's hands were in his pockets as he roamed the corridors of the resistance base. It was that time in the morning where everyone was making their way to their shifts meaning that the corridors were bustling with people. He couldn't help but feel like a shadow. So many people, who saw him daily, walked passed him without even a hint of acknowledgement. The young Solo made the comparison to his sister before he even realised he'd done so. She wouldn't be like a shadow roaming the halls. Everyone knew her. Everyone at least nodded their hello to her as they passed.

He looked up as the subject of his thoughts appeared in front of him from her workshop. Ben paused in his step as he watched her swiftly lock the door and turn to briskly walk away from him, stacks of data pads in hand. She was as much a part of the bustle as everyone else.

Breha disappeared around the bend of the corridor and Ben resumed his walked through the base. He reached the more private side of the base. Where the sleeping quarters and secluded living area for him and his family were located. This section of the base rarely saw use anymore. In the past he and Bree would often sit and chatter or play in the private rooms. It had been their own little area where they could just enjoy being children. He walked passed a small dining room; they used to sit and have meals as a family. That had long since stopped. That room was lucky if it saw two out of four of the family.

Raised voices down the hall caused Ben to stop in his step, head tilting curiously. It was only a moment later he recognised the voices of his mother and father. As quietly as the shadow everyone seemed to see him as, he crept along the side of the hall. He stopped by the entrance to his parent's sleeping quarters and listened to the pair snapping at each other. His head dropped forwards and he glowered at the floor. Three days and they were already at each other's throat. His hands formed fists at his side. So tight that four crescent shaped marked were being pressed into his palm by his fingernails.

He couldn't take it anymore. Ben pushed away from the wall and stalked back the way he came. It was only as he passed the small recreational room that something urged him to stop. Peering into the room, he blinked curiously. The frustration towards his parents ebbed as he became more aware of the unspoken urge to enter the room. An archive lined one of the walls. There was a small section that contained fictional stories that he and Bree had read as children whilst the rest of the archive was made up of historical records. The remainder of the room was filled with a few comfortable, yet worn couches. Having been drawn into the room he continued to follow the urge and found himself stood in front of a historical record. A record about the Galactic Empire. Whilst the younger Solo had never been particularly interested in reading up on history in any great depth; he couldn't help but pocket the archive and retreat to his room to read it.

The morning passed quickly for Breha. No major issues popped up from anywhere so she actually managed to make decent headway into her own list of jobs. By the time mid-afternoon rolled around she was elbow deep in the weapons system of an X-Wing. Since Ben saw her that morning Breha's bun had managed to fall off centre towards the left and a smear of dirt decorated her collar bone. The younger Solo entered the relatively quiet hanger and made a beeline straight for his sister. He'd originally left his room in search of his father but the man was elusive. Ben couldn't help but feel a cold pang of disappointment echo in the back of his mind. He hadn't seen his father for 4 years. Now that Han was back on D'Qar, nothing seemed to have changed.

"Hay," Breha greeted him with a smile. She watched him approach from over the top of one of the wing mounted laser cannons. The cannon had been opened at the top and a few parts had been removed and placed on a beige sheet that lay on the ground in front of her.

"Hay," He replied as he took a seat on a large crate near Breha. Her hands paused in their work as she caught the melancholy tone to his voice. She removed her hands from the laser canon and turned to face her brother, brow furrowing slightly.

"What's bugging you?" She asked softly. Large eyes looked up at her from underneath his hair. The mop of curls was really starting to grow out. Bree waited patiently for him to answer. Just when he was about to, a loud voice cut across him. Both Solo siblings turned to the outside hanger doors. Ben could only blink in disbelief. The man who had been eluding him all afternoon finally made an appearance.

"You're a hard woman to track down." Han said to Bree as he approached his two children. He nodded in Ben's direction. Breha glanced back to her brother but he'd clammed up. Whatever had irked him, she certainly wasn't going to find out now. With a frown she looked back to Han.

"You realise how hypocritical that is coming for you right?" Breha raised a brow at him. Han looked comically affronted for a moment. "Besides I do have a communicator for a reason." She pointed out. He waved his hand dismissively as if the idea was pointless. Ben narrowed his eyes on his father. For him to raise Breha on her comm. Han would have to go to communications, which was in central command, which was where Leia was. Given the argument he'd overheard earlier, was his father already pulling away from them again? This was not how he expected his father to be. In the four year absence Ben had always imagined a doting father. One who would spend time with his children and speak loving words to his wife. A man that Ben could admire and aspire to be like – be his hero. Ben looked up from his hands and watched as Han Solo exchanged quips with his daughter. This man was just a scoundrel.

"So," Han dragged out the word as he took a couple of steps towards the X-wing. "Whose fighter is this?" Breha raised a brow curiously.

"Captain Kun's." She replied. The tone of her voice implied that she was asking her father why he wanted to know.

"Wondered if you were working on your boyfriend's fighter for when he's back on his feet" Han replied casually. Two pairs of eyes widened in surprise at Han's words.

"My what?" Breha asked. A boyfriend was news to her. "I don't have a-" Han turned to look at Breha and she shut her mouth, shaking her head. "No. This isn't a conversation I'm having with you." She turned back to the laser canon in frustration. She glared at the components in front of her. Of all the topics, he chose to try to be a parent over this?

"What?" Han gesticulated his hands out to his sides.

"Who?" Ben asked. Han turned to his son.

"The pilot in medical." Han replied. "What's his name: Demerron?"

"Dameron?" Ben supplied.

"That one." Han quickly turned back to Breha. Ben's lips pulled down at one corner. It seemed like the entire base was obsessed with Poe Dameron. All of the rumours and theories on where he had been and how he'd ended up in medical were promoting him to a celebrity like status. Ben shook his head; he was just a pilot.

"There is _nothing_ going on." Breha hissed. She turned to her father. Ben could tell by the way her nostrils flared that she was getting frustrated with the man.

"Oh there is something." Han replied knowingly. He'd seen the way the pilot had looked at Breha when they'd found him in his cell.

"What?" Breha could feel her temper rising.

"I've seen the way he looks at you." Han didn't back down. "That look is something."

"There was no look." Breha had abandoned the laser canon by this point and had stalked towards her father. "Poe looks at everyone like that. If you were actually here to get to know him you'd be aware of that." She spoke lowly. Ben could only watch as Han managed to piss off the second woman in the younger Solo's life. "And for clarity, this" she waved a finger between her and Han, "father-daughter gossip sessions are not something we're going to start. There was time for that four-fucking-years ago." She was seething by this point as she turned away from her father and stalked out of the hanger. Breha couldn't be around him for much longer. With each word that came from his mouth the more she wanted to punch him. She exited through the outer hanger doors and welcomed the evening sun on her face.

"Bree." Han called after his daughter but she just ignored him. It seemed natural to him for a father to be curious about men that were interested in his daughter. That was what fathers did right? It took for Ben to hop down from the crate for Han to remember that his son had paid witnessed to the little confrontation. "Women huh." Han tried to lighten the mood. Ben frowned. First his mother, then Breha. In the four years he'd been gone, Ben had painted Han as a hero. Guess the warnings were true – you should never meet your heroes.

"Actually, I think that was you." Ben said. Han could only blink in surprise as he watched his son follow after Breha. Han groaned.

 _Meanwhile_

 _Location: Tessler_

Pav whimpered as a much larger frame deposited him roughly onto a chair. The pair were alone in a very dark and very deserted part of the dregs. Two large arms trapped the informant in the chair and the well-built man leant closer to Pav threateningly. Piercing grey eyes glowered at the rat like man.

"You're a difficult man to find." Acer growled lowly. A high neck shirt covered most of the lower part of his face and a hood hid his distinctive red Mohawk. Since Veeta had met his demise the pirates had investigated his former boss's territory. It had been a surprise for both Acer and the pirates to find out that Veeta had been dealing with an outside party behind their backs. The pirates had been livid that Veeta had been making a profit and not cut them in on it. As a result Veeta's area got ransacked. The pirates drove in first, quickly followed by Maghul's gang. Maghul had been itching to get back at Veeta and that was the perfect opportunity. Veeta's former gang had looked to Acer to lead them against the opposition. But the truth was, he was just as cheated at the pirates. Veeta had always claimed that Acer was special. That he was different from the other gang members. But when it came down to it Veeta had cut him out of a deal as well. The red headed vulture knew nothing of the side deal his boss had made.

"Acer. So good to see you." Pav's voice was high. Acer slammed his fist on the arm of the chest making the informant jump. The vulture did know one thing though. His life had been a lot better before Talis's friends had arrived to bust him out. The once highly feared vulture had been reduced down to the dregs and he swore he'd find the group responsible and make them suffer for it.

"Who broke Talis out?" Acer demanded.

"Information is going to cost-" Pav was cut off as Acer wrapped a hand around his neck.

"Your pathetic little life is the cost." Acer growled. "Now don't make me ask again." He felt Pav swallow thickly with fear beneath his hand.

"Relik." Pav squeaked. Acer's hand slackened at the name. The name of a legend. "She goes by Breha now though. She had help from Han Solo and his Wookie friend." Pav spoke so quickly his words almost blurred together.

"Where have they gone?" Acer glowered.

"I don't-" Pav whimpered as Acer twitched the hand about his throat warningly. "You can strangle me all you want. I honestly don't know where they've gone." Acer narrowed his eyes at the trembling man beneath his grasp. He could feel his pulse bounding beneath his fingers. It took a few moments, but the vulture finally accepted the informant was telling the truth. A thought then crossed the vulture's mind. Relik had used the _Nexus_ to escape Tessler.

"Where's the ship Relik arrived on?" Acer asked lowly. If he couldn't find out where they had gone. Maybe, just maybe, the ship they had arrived on could tell him where they came from. He wasn't naïve enough to think that Relik hadn't programmed some form of automatic history delete in the ship navigation. Acer was just confident that he was smart enough to find a way around it.

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

 **To dleshae: I'm glad that you like the fic :D Hope you enjoyed the chapter.**

 **To feelthatfire: Thank you for the review. I laughed out loud at the comment about Poe's last name. It truly is appropriate haha. I too love the Ben/Breha and Ben/Han moments. He's such an adorable child… damn him for growing up. And yes! Ben is at that age where he's really wanting his father to just be there. This chapter is really just expanding on the whole Solo family dynamic and the impact Han's sudden return is having on all of them. I hope you enjoyed this chapter.**

 **To the Guest from 16** **th** **April: Yay! So glad that you're back home and feeling better :D And you're correct. I do have a bigger arc to the plot planned out, this chapter hints a bit more at what's to come. I could delve into the action straight away but I felt like the characters needed developing a bit more.**

 **To JunJunyil: Not as long between updates this time! My aim is to try and update weekly. I have exams coming up and general other nasty things in life like work. But the aim is to get a chapter out each week. Tut Veeta, whilst a low life and a big deal at Tessler isn't the be all and end all of the races. Ultimately the pirates control that area. This was expanded on a little more in this chapter so I hope that answered some of your questions? And yes! Acer is back. I don't want to spoil too much for you but I will say that the points you raised about Breha's past are valid and not to worry. I put too much work into developing this entire arc of the fic to just drop it suddenly without tying up all the loose ends. And please don't hold back your thoughts in your reviews! Reviews are meant to be your genuine thoughts on the fic and I love hearing your suggestions/predictions for the plot. I can't guarantee that I'll use what you say, but I always appreciate a different point of view.**

 **To cerileneross: Yeah… I definitely can't do a Rey, scream "the garbage will do" and then hope for the best haha. Brilliant to hear that you appreciate the slow burn! And I can't wait for BB8 either, I love that little droid haha. He's so close to making an appearance as well. Ben/Breha scenes are possibly some of my favourite to write and yet heart breaking because I have their future relationship planned out in my head and we all know what happens to Ben. Stupid dark side. Anyway! I hope you enjoyed the chapter.**

 **To Katerinaki: Believe it or not the very original concept for this fic was an OC in TFA canon. But as I began developing Breha's back story and fleshing her character out it became more appropriate to set it before TFA. My current intention is to take Breha through the events of TFA but possibly do it in a separate fic? That way if I cock it up people can still read Namesake as a standalone fic. As for where we are in the timeline. Ben is still quite young and hasn't received any formal training from Luke yet, only exercises to do. It's coming close to the time that Ben will be sent away to train with Luke and I've started to hint at those events in this chapter. I then see Ben with Luke for a few years and then defecting… And obviously Ben trains with Snoke for a few years before we get to TFA. I know this is a really vague answer to your question haha but I hope that helped a little**

 **To Sam0728: "Relik" – who Breha used to be – is a name that very few get to hear anymore as Veeta enforced that she wasn't spoke about. So Poe probably hasn't heard of her. Maya on the other hand would have been at Tessler when Relik was. So Maya will know the name.**

 **To Great Admirer: (you're name alone is a massive compliment haha) Welcome to Namesake! So great to hear that you love the pace and characters. I did a little fist pump at the Han Solo compliment. He's honestly one of the hardest characters I've had to write haha. Particularly in this chapter. I also can't wait for BB8. I love that little cutie. There will be a little more Breha-Ben moments but time it ticking and Ben needs to defect :( stupid Snoke. And oh my God yes! God help the resistance when Poe and Breha actually become a couple. I don't think they're prepared for such a smart lipped pairing haha. Yay! Fan of the slow burn! Hope you enjoyed the chapter.**

 **To Bluedog02: No you can't be dead! Haha I thought you'd appreciate the ship names haha. Thank you so much for your review (and your review was not terrible!) :D It brought a massive smile to my face. It's incredible to hear that my own little concepts appear at home in the Star Wars canon. There wasn't as much Poe/Breha in this chapter mainly because I wanted to expand on the Solo family dynamics.**

 **Civic1980: Haha I wasn't kidding when I said this fic was a slow burner!**

 **To the Guest from 17** **th** **April: Nawww, a little squeal is adorable. I'm so glad I could make your work day better. It's fantastic to receive compliments on my OCs I genuinely try to flesh them out as much as possible because otherwise they just look 2 dimensional next to canon characters. I was pleased to be able to write Kit again. Out of all the characters he's probably the one I can associate with the most haha. And I'm glad you appreciate the link between the baby trafficking and TFA awaken canon :D I mentioned in an earlier comment that my goal is to update once a week. So fingers crossed I can keep on top of that haha. I hope you enjoyed the chapter.**

 **To JustDreamAboutIt: Thank you! I hope you enjoyed this chapter.**

 **To marflark: Big smile from me :D So glad that you appreciate the link between the source of the new-age storm troopers and Tessler. And no so much Poe-Breha in this chapter (damn man is still in bed haha). This chapter was very Solo family centric. I hope you enjoyed it anyway!**

 **To saramichellegellarfan1: Thank you! Hope you enjoyed this one.**

 **To Ardoa88: … Holy Cr*p … Firstly I just want to get it said that your reviews (note the plural, very much plural) were incredible! And secondly it was a fun experiencing having you review and yet also having the pleasure of knowing what you had left to read :D Okay so let me begin with saying congratulations on getting into college for aviation maintenance! It's wonderful to hear that you can associate with Breha so strongly. I mentioned in an earlier review that out of all of the characters, Breha doesn't speak to me the strongest – Kit does haha. Probably because that's my area of study when I'm not writing fanfiction. Next I want to ask if your cousin post any of their stories on fanfiction!? And also to say that I didn't always write like this! I have a massive bank of half planned/half written fanfiction on my laptop for multiple genres. I can really see the development from my earlier pieces of work, which in all honesty are shocking haha. Anyway, back to Namesake. To be honest, a lot of people either didn't comment or didn't consciously notice Ben's neglect. I wanted to put it in from the beginning so it wouldn't seem out of place in chapters like the one above. It's a lot like a romance in that sense. If you run head first into it; it doesn't seem realistic. I hope this way is seems more believable. It's always great to hear from someone who appreciates a good slow-burn romance and that is definitely what this relationship will be. YES! You are the first person I know of who caught the Obi-wan reference! Obi-wan is one of my favourite Star Wars characters so that was my little homage to him haha. For the record, you have no need to apologise for any of the comments you made about the "lovey-dovey" nature of Poe-Breha in the earlier chapters. You have the right to your own opinion and your reviews are always constructive. As someone who is constantly trying to better their writing and plot constructive criticism and praise are the two things I crave haha. I will definitely agree with you. Breha-Han scenes are super hard to write! They're actually easier when Han is not being so much 'her father' and more 'her scruffy friend'. This chapter for example where Han is trying to be her father is just awkward. Han's just not great at parenting haha. Whilst you say not to shocked by the amount of positive reviews. I still can't get over it. I never expected this fic to get the following it has done and I'm so grateful to everyone who reviews/favourites/follows. It is still mind boggling to hear people put this fic in leagues with films/books/plays! I will admit I was close to chickening out and not including Admiral Ackbar… but realistically, he would be informed so the Admiral is on his way haha fingers crossed I can handle him! And I will always humour reviewers! I mentioned in an earlier comment for one reviewer not to hold back their ideas/speculations. I genuinely love hearing what you guys think and whilst I may not include all of your ideas they definitely help me consider this fic from other perspectives. I really liked your idea about doing a Ben centred chapter which is why this chapter leans more towards his POV in parts. It's definitely a writing tool I plan on utilising again. As for Maya she will definitely be sticking around but I'm torn between a couple of potential plot line for her. All of which, you'll be happy to hear, maintain Breha's strong character. And you nailed the prediction of a Breha-Acer conflict haha. Not as far away as you might think. All I can finish with is THANK YOU so, so much for your thorough review of Namesake and I hope you continue to enjoy the fic :D … Oh and I'm a girl. X**

 **To the Guest from 22** **nd** **April: Wow! Thank you so much. It's such a big compliment for someone to say this is their favourite Poe/OC fic! I hope you enjoyed this chapter.**


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19**

It sounded like he was underwater. Everything sounded a little too far away; muffled and distorted so that he couldn't understand it. It was comfortable though. Poe couldn't deny that. It was like a warm blanket had cocooned him, paying particular attention to the wounds he'd sustained at Tessler. Ever so slowly though, the blanket began to slip from him. The distorted sounds crept closer and he was slowly brought around from the blissful state he'd been put into.

Kit Lohan finished tapping on the screen next to Poe Dameron's bed and glanced down at his patient. Happy with the way he was responding the medic turned to General Organa. Leia was waiting patiently at the end of Poe's bed. She was a lot like Breha in that respect Kit noticed. The General knew exactly where to stand so that she wouldn't be in his way as he worked around Poe.

"He should come around in the next few minutes." Kit informed her. Leia nodded to Kit but her eyes quickly turned back to her Commander. Kit followed her gaze and couldn't help but wonder what important information was locked away in the commander's head. Whatever it was, the General was eager to hear it. Kit had been instructed by her to call her when the commander was being woken up, no matter what the time of day. A deep hum pulled Kit from his musing and he focussed his attention back to the pilot. Poe slowly stirred from his sleep and blinked open his eyes. Kit could see the confusion in the pilots gaze as he quickly began assessing him, but it only lasted for a moment. Poe quickly remembered and registered where he was, relaxing as he let Kit run the scanner from head to toe. "How are you feeling?" Kit asked.

"Good." Poe replied. His hand rose to his jaw to rub it gently. "Odd." He added as he tried to work out the strange tingling sensation that came every time he moved his jaw.

"The tingling is a side effect from the bacta." Kit explained as he observed Poe. "There are several areas across your chest that will feel the same way. The sensation should fade in a few days." Poe nodded his understanding.

"He's all yours Sir." Kit said to the General. Poe's brow furrowed and he leant upwards, blinking in surprise as he saw the General standing at the end of his bed.

"Welcome back Commander." Leia smiled warmly at her commander.

"General." Poe overcame his surprise quickly and moved to sit up. As he moved he could feel the areas of his chest that had been made extra sensitive by the bacta. Leia stepped forward and raised her hand softly, palm facing Poe.

"No need to push yourself Poe." Leia said as she eyed the commander. She's seen the battered state he'd been in when he had arrived back.

"I'm good." He dismissed her concern with a charming smile as he pulled a loose grey shirt over his head. Leia quirked a brow and both men released where Breha picked up the expression.

"He should be fine to move around." Kit assured her. "In fact I'd encourage it." Kit added. The quicker the commander got up on his feet the better it boded for his recovery. "Anyway. I'll leave you two." Kit stepped away from Poe's bed. His eyes glanced over at Maya who was still asleep in the bay next to Poe. "And it would be appreciated if someone could let me know what's happening with Maya." He added. Poe and Leia followed his gaze towards the girl. Whilst the medic trusted Breha's judgement, Maya had been sedated for five days now.

"Maya." Poe exhaled her name in a breath. The pilot was out of his own bed and over by her bedside before either Leia or Kit could stop him. His legs were shaky underneath him for the first few steps but he made it over to her.

"Of course Kit." Leia nodded to him. The medic's lips were pulled into a tight line as he nodded to the General and retreated to his office, closing the door behind him.

"Is she okay?" Poe asked Leia when she joined him at Maya's bed side.

"She's just been sedated." Leia assured him. "Breha explained how distressed she was and recommended that Maya's sedation continued until you awoke." Poe nodded absentmindedly as his mind was suddenly filled with images of Breha, her face covered by a scarf, running through blaster fire. Glancing around, he couldn't see her in medical so she mustn't have been injured. He briefly wondered if the black haired mechanic had been to see him whilst he was unconscious. In fact,

"How long have I been out?" He asked.

"Five days." Leia replied. Poe ran a hand along the side of his jaw and turned to face the General. "I have a lot I need to discuss with you." She said. Poe nodded, feeling exactly the same need. Kit couldn't resist glancing through the window of his office and watch the pair as they left Maya's bedside and returned to Poe's bay.

At first it was Poe who did most of the talking, briefing the General on the finer details that he didn't have time to include in his initial report. Leia sat quietly, much like she did for Breha, and simply let the pilot speak. She only interrupted him a couple of times when she had to ask a question for clarification.

"Whilst you were recovering I contacted Admiral Ackbar and my brother Luke. They're both returning to the base so that we can plan how we're going to proceed. They should arrive in the next day or so and I would like for you to attend the meeting – if you're feeling able?" Leia asked. Poe's face was nothing but serious.

"Of course General. I'll be there." He replied. It wasn't often that Poe lost all trace of amusement from his expression. Even in the throes of an X-wing dog fight Poe had been known to have an almost guilty look of amusement lurking in the corner of his eyes. The expression had caused him a lot of trouble during basic training. His commanders never took to well to a rookie looking amused. Leia's gaze turned from her commander and looked over at the sleeping girl in the neighbouring bay.

"She took a life for the first time." Poe said quietly as he followed the General's gaze.

"From what you and Breha have reported I assumed as much." Leia replied solemnly. "She's so young."

"She's 16." Poe said. Leia's eyes widened slightly. Maya did not look 16. She was tiny, with not a hint of pubertal development beginning to show on her figure. She compared that to Ben, who was the same age, and whose voice had already broken and height rocketed. "And has been malnourished for quite some time." Poe added. "Maya fell into the hands of Tut Veeta when she was four. She and her younger brother. But they were separated and she hasn't seen him since. I suspected her brother had been trafficked away from Tessler and when I investigated further I found that he had been traded to the First Order. Maya was too old so she was claimed by Veeta."

"She will need you when she wakes." Leia said after a long pause.

"I'll be there for her." Poe agreed. "I'll speak to Medic Lohan about waking her up." Poe nodded his head towards Kit's office. Leia nodded her approval. The General stood from her chair and turned her gaze back to Poe.

"I can only thank you for everything you've done Poe." Leia said. Poe smiled weakly in reply.

"I'd do it again." He replied and Leia didn't doubt him. Poe was a resistance man through and through. "Thanks for coming to get me." He ginned charmingly with a hint of amusement in his voice.

"Well I couldn't just abandon one of my best Commanders could I?" Leia smirked. "Besides there was no stopping Breha." Leia added. She watched the commander's reaction carefully as she mentioned her daughter. With interest, Leia noted the fading of the mischievous glint in his eyes and a more serious look claimed them. His charming smile still remained however.

"I've seen her in action. I wouldn't want to be the one to try and stop her." Poe replied. A warm swell of pride stirred within Leia at the commander's words for her daughter.

"Hmm," Leia sounded amused. "Well enjoy your rest Commander." She gave Poe a final nod before turning and leaving the medical department. He watched her retreating back and released a breath he hadn't realised he'd been holding when she finally disappeared through the doors. The sound of Kit's office doors opening pulled Poe's attention from the exit and over to the medic. The pair spoke about Maya. Kit updated Poe on her condition and how it had improved now that she was receiving proper nutrition. They then went on to put together a plan for waking her up. It had been agreed that the sooner she was awoken the better; unfamiliar faces should be kept to a minimum; and Maya should be brought around somewhere peaceful and quiet. It was obvious that Poe would be by her side when she came around but,

"I want Breha there as well." Poe said. Kit raised a slender eyebrow at the pilot.

"Why Bree?" Kit asked. It didn't escape Poe's notice that the medic was obviously familiar enough with the mechanic to warrant shortening her name. Then again, mechanics were known to be the most frequent visitors of medical.

"Breha was the one who offered Maya the choice of whether she wanted to return with us or not." Poe replied. "Choice isn't something Maya has had a lot of in her life." That, and Poe had witnessed how Breha provided cover fire for Maya when they were escaping Veeta's area. Maya had trusted Breha with her life when she had left cover and sprinted towards the _Nexus._ That action alone built a form of trust that was hard to explain to a non-combatant like Kit.

"Okay so we have Breha there as well." Kit agreed. "I'll send her a message."

"No need." Poe said as he rose from his chair and pulled on his brown jacket. "I'm heading over that way." He was already making his way over towards the exit.

"You realise I haven't discharged you!" Kit called after him, glowering at the pilots back.

"I thought you were encouraging me to move around?" Poe turned back to the medic as he reached the door and cheekily threw Kit a wink.

"Damn pilot." Kit growled as Poe disappeared.

It had once again been a quiet day for Breha. If she was honest the smooth running of the base was actually unnerving her. They had gone so long being understaffed that she was more used to stress than anything else. It also didn't help that the events at Tessler hadn't even been a week ago. Her body had gone from light speed to impulse in a matter of days and it was an odd adjustment to make. It was like she was waiting around for the next catastrophe. She'd found herself checking her communicator throughout the day just to make sure it was working properly. It was. It was just that people rarely needed to contact her. Even her father had avoided her since their confrontation in the hanger. Although, Breha was quite glad of that and had actively been avoiding him as well. She did not feel like having a repeat discussion of her potential love life with Han Solo.

A long breath passed between her lips as nimble fingers fiddled around with the circuits of the medical scanner in front of her. Kit had handed it to her that morning when she went to check on Maya and Poe. Whilst Breha wasn't technically the mechanic on call for the medical department, she knew she'd have time to look at it that evening. With the days being so quiet she was actually getting through all of her assigned work, leaving her with time to spare in the evenings. It was those evenings that the almost completed BB unit taunted her from one of her work benches. Most days she would frown at it before taking up station at her other work bench with her back to the BB unit and her back to the door.

A knock at the workshop door pulled Breha from her musings.

"Come in," She called over her shoulder without turning around.

Poe entered the workshop. He stopped a few paces into the room and couldn't stop the smile that pulled at his lips. He couldn't explain the warmth that filled him being able to see Breha back in her workshop. The familiarity of it was unexplainably soothing. From the scruffy overalls tied at her waist to the lopsided messy bun on her head.

"Hi Breha."

There was a clank as whatever she was holding slipped from her hands and fell the few centimetres to the bench. Honey eyes widened as the voice washed over her. She whipped around quickly and the air hitched in her throat at the sight of Poe Dameron smiling at her. The air that had been stuck in her throat passed between her lips softly, a whispered curse leaving with it. Her body moved instinctively as she rushed to meet Poe and wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him into a tight hug. Poe chuckled lowly, the vibrations in his chest passing through hers as well. His hands wrapped around the small of her back and pulled her closer to him. Breha pulled away from him, placing one hand firmly on his shoulder whilst the other gently took his jaw and tilted it so that she could inspect it. Poe's jaw jumped beneath her touch. Her eyes widened in concern.

"I'm fine Bree." Poe assured her, catching her worried expression. He took her hand in his and lowered it from his jaw. "It's just sensitive from the bacta." His explanation abated her concern somewhat. Her eyes scanned over him once more before she stepped away from him, her hand falling from his shoulder.

"It's good to have you back Poe." She smiled and it was taking everything not to grin at him like an idiot.

"I believe I have you to thank for that." He smiled back. Breha shrugged nonchalantly.

"I was more concerned with getting the _Nexus_ back to be honest." She said airily. Poe's eyes glinted with amusement as he caught her obvious teasing.

"Did you hug the _Nexus_ like that too?" he teased in return.

"I'm guessing its comments like that that got your jaw broken?" Breha rolled her eyes but she was still smiling.

"I think he was jealous of my good looks as well." Poe added off hand. A laugh escaped Breha's lips as she shook her head in amusement. Her amusement was infectious and Poe found himself grinning at her.

"You're unbelievable." Breha smirked at him. "Now did you actually come down here for anything important?"

"Me waking up isn't important?" he asked with mock affront. Breha simply quirked an eyebrow at him. "I want you there when Maya wakes up." Poe said simply. That caused Breha to blink in surprise.

"I'll be there." She replied softly after a moments pause. Poe nodded appreciatively but the semi-serious expression on his face was lost the moment he caught sight of an orange and white BB unit. Breha saw his eyes widen and followed his gaze to the non-functioning BB-8.

"Is that my droid?" Poe asked, the excitement in his voice was reminiscent of Ben's the time he was told that Luke was going to start teaching him lightsaber forms. The pilot was brushing past Breha and over to the droid before she could reply.

"Yeah." She replied finally. She chewed her lip as she followed after him slowly. He was inspecting the droid carefully. From what Poe could make out the droid looked complete. He figured it must be something within the circuits that kept the droid inactive.

"How long until it's finished?" He asked.

"I could finish it now." Breha admitted. Poe paused in his inspection of the BB unit and turned to look at Breha curiously. "The droids been one step away from completion for weeks." She explained as she walked to stand beside Poe at the bench. She refused to meet his eye. "Don't laugh. It just didn't feel right completing it when you were there." Breha stared at the droid, waiting for Poe's smart-alecky comment. She knew not completing the droid simply because Poe was off-planet seemed irrational but when Breha had a feeling she always went with it, regardless of how irrational it seemed to onlookers.

"I'm not laughing Breha." Poe said quietly causing a shiver to roll down Breha's neck. "Is this what you need?" He asked as he handed her a small metal cylinder, half the size of her little finger. It had been sitting next to the droid.

"Yeah." She said, almost breathlessly as she took the part from him. She opened the service hatch on the BB unit and connected the part up, closing the hatch once she was finished. It only took a few moments for the lights to switch on and the BB unit began to move. Its head swivelled up and the black lens carefully surveyed the two humans in front of it. A low, almost innocent tone echoed out from the droid as it recognised the faces of the two humans from the pre-installed data. "Welcome to the resistance BB-8." Breha greeted.

"BB-8 huh?" Poe grinned. BB-8 swivelled its head between the two humans. "Fancy being my flying partner, buddy?" Poe asked.

 _How well can you fly?_ The droid replied in binary. Breha laughed at the droids reply. Poe blinked in surprise before smirking at the droid. With comments like that it was obvious that Breha had made the astromech.

"I'm the best pilot there is." Poe replied. A few beeps later BB-8 seemed content with being partnered with the best pilot.

"So how do you like your droid?" Breha asked once BB-8 had come down from the work bench and was rolling around the workshop investigating various items. She was stood side by side with Poe as they watched the curious little droid explore its new surroundings.

"I think he's perfect." Poe replied. "Thank you." He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her into his side, at the same time he thoughtlessly placed a kiss on her temple.

Elsewhere in the galaxy, a hooded figure readied his weapons inside of a small, stealth modified ship. He had a location. He just didn't have the luxury of a large team. No, this would have to be a covert mission. Quickly in, quickly out – with Relik being dead at the end of it all.

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

 **To JunJunyil: Gah! I can't wait for Rogue One to be released. It looks like an incredible film :D And yes! Acer is the one to watch, Tut Veeta was just a gangster. Wow, I'm always in awe of people who can speak more than one language. I'm a rather stereotypical English speaker than can only speak English haha What is your mother tongue if you don't mind me asking? There wasn't much about Breha's past revealed in this chapter, but it will come I promise! And my exams are a little way off yet. And thank you! There's course work due in this month and then my actual exams are in June/July.**

 **To Colleen: There he is! All fresh faced and woken up. And yeah, there was a much darker side to Ben in the last chapter. I have his character progression all planned out, but I think it's going to pain me to write it. Ben is so sweet and innocent at the moment haha. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!**

 **To Bluedog02: Precious baby sunshine is back! This was basically a Poe chapter to be honest haha. And wow! So much love for Breha! It's almost unreal to hear you say all of that stuff about her! Thank you so much! And Yes! Punches air in celebration for getting Han in character. He really isn't the best father at all but I like to think that the intention is there… the execution if just rubbish. I too love Breha-Ben and even though I have Ben's character progression planned out, it's going to pain me to write it… :(. And you are more than welcome! I want to thank you for reviewing! Honestly I can't explain the warm fuzzies I get when I read reviews from you! Hope you enjoyed the chapter.**

 **To q: Thank you for your review! Well there is your Poe and Luke is soon to come! Hope you enjoyed the chapter.**

 **To feelthatfire: He's really not great at being a father is he? Haha. And I know! I almost find myself shouting that at Ben as I write the chapters. He's so cute and adorable at the moment. But I have his progression planned out and as much as it pains me… damn it I have to write it. Hope you enjoyed the chapter.**

 **To marflark: I hope your business trip went well! Thank you for your review. Han trying to be a father, failing and acting a jerk just seemed like the natural actions when I was planning the chapter. So glad that it came across as in character! I shouted that at Ben as I wrote the chapter as well haha. Damn it Ben. Stay innocent haha. Awww, I was never really sure who read these little review replies at the end… I'll continue to write them regardless. I mean you guys take the time to review so I'll take the time to reply :D But it's lovely to hear that you like reading them. And yes! There are definite plans. I mean the original plan was to start this fic in TFA… but I ended up here instead haha. Hope you enjoyed the chapter.**

 **To Ardoa88: All of your reviews earnt the response! Thank you for wishing me luck! I have course work due in this month and then my actual exams are June/July time :D I like Harry Potter so I'll take a wander over to their fic! Gah! So glad you liked the chapter… and I can't wait for that showdown either! Not too sure about lightsaber fights yet… I mean they're a pretty rare weapon. Luke has one for definite and is trained to use it… we also know that Breha and Ben are trained in the forms of the lightsaber… I'll leave people to speculate on that one haha. Hope you enjoyed this chapter!**

 **To Great Admirer: Welcome back! :D and there's some Poe interaction for you! Haha. So good to hear you liked the Han interaction. Yeah the pair are pretty oblivious to be honest haha. They're both young adults in this so pretty inexperienced with serious feelings haha, however some of the 3** **rd** **party onlookers are older and wiser and can possibly see the start of something :D And with regards to Kit. He and Breha are friends… but then again according to Breah she and Poe are friends soooo… I'll just leave that comment there haha. Hope you enjoyed the chapter anyway!**

 **To LoveFiction2016: Thank you for your review. Hope you enjoyed this chapter.**

 **To Sky65: Thank you for your review. Always brilliant to hear that the characters and their interactions with each other are being done well :D Especially in regards to Poe-Breha. Thank you, and I hope you enjoyed this chapter.**

 **To the Guest from 1** **st** **May: Thank you, your review came through as I was editing this chapter for posting haha. Massive boost of encouragement :D Hope you enjoyed the chapter.**


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20**

 **Happy Star Wars Day! May the 4** **th** **be with you.**

"How long will it take her to come around?" Breha asked. Maya had been moved from the screened off bay in the main medical ward to a smaller side room. In the room with her, Kit stood on one side of the bed assessing the screen that displayed Maya vitals. Poe sat on the chair on the other side of Maya. That left Breha to stand a few paces away from the end of the bed.

"About a minute." Kit replied as he finished tapping on the screen; he looked to Maya and then up to Breha. "Maybe less." Breha nodded and sent the medic a small smile. Kit returned the smile before turning back to Maya. The three adults in the room shifted as Maya stirred slightly from her sleep. A low hum resonating from her throat as her head turned to the side. Deep brown eyes blinked open, hazy with sleep. With each second her gaze became clearer and the blurry figure of the man sat by her bedside came into focus.

"Maya." Poe smiled softly down at her as her gaze focussed on him.

"Talis." She replied, her voice thick with sleep. Maya started slightly when a medical scanner came into view.

"It's okay. He's a medic. He's been looking after you." Poe assured Maya, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. "His name's Kit." Maya's tense frame relaxed somewhat but she still eyed the black haired medic with caution.

"Where am I?" She asked as she moved to sit up. Her eyes caught sight of the top of her own chest and her hands flew to the skin there. Her eyes were wide as her fingers moved over where her tattoo should be, but instead there was only smooth dark skin.

"Your tattoo is still there," Breha said. Maya's eyes shot up at the sound of the woman's voice. "It's just not visible under these light wavelengths. As for where you are, this is the resistance base." She explained. The wide eyed expression returned to the younger girls face as she stared at the mechanic at the end of her bed. Maya immediately recognised the face of the woman who had provided her with covering fire back on Tessler. But as Breha stood there in dark trousers, an even darker jacket and her hair tied back; Maya couldn't help but remember a different face. The other face was of a fearsome woman that once roamed the halls of Tessler. The face of Veeta's original prize vulture. Maya swallowed thickly as she glanced down at the bare skin of Breha's collar bones. Maya pushed the thoughts from her mind, forcing herself to believe that they couldn't be the same person.

"The resistance?" Her voice cracked.

"I know it's a lot to take in Maya." Poe's voice was nothing but warmth and comfort to Maya. Her eyes fell to her lap as she began to remember the events of Tessler. "Veeta." Her voice was hoarse. Breha found herself stepping forward in concern as Maya's respiration rate began to increase. Kit too raised the scanner to Maya, sharing Breha's concern.

"Maya." Poe said firmly. The girl's head snapped to look at him. "Breathe." His voice maintained the same firm, yet soothing tone. Maya inhaled deeply and kept her gaze on Poe. The pilot's hand on her shoulder felt like the only thing that kept her secure. Breha looked to Kit who held the scanner in place for a few more moments before he was satisfied that Maya was calming down. The medic and the mechanic shared a look of relief before turning their attentions back to the girl.

"I killed him." Maya sounded so small. Poe's eyes softened and he gently pulled the girl into a hug. Breha felt an ache in her chest for the young girl. In her head she could still hear the cry Maya had made after making the kill shot. "He was a monster and I killed him." She mumbled into Poe's shoulder. "I killed a monster and I feel like I'm being torn apart because of it."

"You're being torn apart because _you_ are _not_ a monster." Breha said. Maya stilled in Poe's arms and slowly rose her head to look at Breha. The mechanic knew the eyes of both men were also on her, but she only had eyes for the young girl. "People like Veeta kill without remorse. They don't feel what you're feeling now. When they close their eyes they don't see the faces of those they've killed. When they look at their hands they don't see them covered in blood. When everything else is quiet they don't hear a person's dying cry. But you do." As Breha spoke Poe could feel a chill running along the back of his neck. "You feel like you're being driven mad." Maya stared at Breha with wide eyes. She knew. She knew what it was like.

"I don't want to feel like this anymore." Maya said.

"It gets easier." Breha promised her. "You surround yourself with good people." Breha's gaze flickered to Poe and Maya followed her gaze. "They help." Poe was still staring at Breha with a furrowed brow. It was only when Maya's warm hand was placed over his own that he brought his attention back to the girl.

Leia stood with her arms crossed in front of her as she signed off the communication. Both Luke and Admiral Ackbar were due to arrive at D'Qar within the next few minutes or so. For a moment her eyes stared aimlessly at the screen in front of her and she focussed on the eerie foreboding feeling stirring in the back of her mind. She briefly wondered if Luke was feeling the same way. The noise of a throat being cleared behind her pulled her back to focus. The General turned around and almost audibly sighed at the sight of Han Solo. He entered the smaller side room and approached the frowning woman. She was frowning because she knew what he'd come to speak to her about. They had been arguing about it for days now.

"We need you Han." Leia said before he could utter a word. Han's lips pulled into a tight line.

"This isn't my fight Leia." He repeated the argument he'd been using.

"That's rubbish and you know it." She narrowed her eyes on him. Han had fought with the rebellion; how could he be so dense that he couldn't see it was still the same fight? Hell, the man had flown to Tessler with Breha. Han agitatedly paced and ran a hand over his forehead.

"It isn't." Han stopped in front of her. "This isn't me."

"So what?" Leia's gaze landed accusingly on the smuggler in front of her. "You're going to leave again?" She was met with silence.

"I don't know." He answered quietly. Leia sighed and looked to the floor sadly. Han's silence after her question had been too long – he did know. He was going to leave. Han closed the last of the space between himself and Leia. He took her jaw between his thumb and forefinger and gently pressed his lips to hers. Leia returned the kiss but couldn't help the melancholy sigh that left her when they parted. She'd had enough goodbye kisses in her time to know that was what they'd just shared.

Outside of the side room Ben stood staring at the door. He was frozen to the spot and it felt like a heavy weight had been pressed onto his chest. His father wasn't even going to try? Han, having been gone for years, had returned only to abandon them all over again. His fists clenched at his sides and his teeth ground together. Turning quickly Ben stormed out of the command centre, rudely brushing off C3PO as the droid tried to intercept the young Solo.

Ben didn't have a destination in mind as he stalked through the corridors of the base, but he did have a person in mind. He trusted his instinctual feelings and soon enough he rounded a corner and spotted his sister. She was stood outside of medical talking to that damn pilot.

"Breha," Poe began as he stepped out of medical with Breha. They were taking a small break from speaking to Maya. The young girl in question was currently being shown around medical by Kit. She had been awake for just over two hours now and in that time he, Breha and Kit had spoken to her in length. They'd answered any questions she had as well as explaining to her what the resistance was and its importance. As the time passed it was obvious that Maya was getting more comfortable with her surroundings.

"Yeah?" Breha turned to look at the pilot.

"What you said in there to Maya, about her not being a monster." Poe began. Breha's lips tugged downwards at the corners. Poe wasn't an idiot, and neither was Kit. From the way Breha had spoken about the guilt of taking a life it sounded like she had personal experience. Breha glanced to the floor before building the courage to meet Poe's gaze again.

"I've done some terrible things Poe." Breha admitted. He felt his gut clench uncomfortably as he saw the pain behind her eyes. The urge to bundle her up in his arms and hold her tightly against him until the pain went away was unexplainable. He opened his mouth to speak but a voice beat him to it.

"Bree." Ben called as he walked down the corridor. She turned to her brother and immediately noted his distress.

"I have to go Poe." Breha said without taking her eyes from her brother.

"What?" Poe's brow furrowed. Ben barely stopped when he met the pair, his hand took Breha's wrist and he continued walking.

"Later Poe." Breha assured him before turning and walking down the corridor after her brother.

"Breha!" Poe called after her but she disappeared around the corner.

Breha allowed Ben to lead her down the corridor but she got the impression that her brother didn't have a destination in mind. And by the way his grip was tightening around her wrist his level of distress was increasing. The mechanic forced herself to swallow down her worry for him in order to think clearly. The first empty break room they passed Breha pulled Ben backwards and into the room. He grunted in surprise and stumbled into the room. He quickly straightened himself out and turned to face his sister. Breha's heart ached as she watched Ben's large eyes fill with tears.

"He's going to leave." Ben said. Breha didn't even have to ask who he was referring to. Ben's announcement felt like someone had punched her right in the stomach and it was only made worse as she watched Ben's whole body shake. "He's going to leave. Again!" Ben shouted. He took the nearest object to hand, a scanner of some description, and threw it across the room. The machine hit the wall with force and shattered into tiny pieces that fell to the floor. The younger Solo went to grab another object but his sister's arms around him stopped him in his tracks. She didn't say a word; she didn't have to. Her arms around his shoulders, cradling the back of his head into the nape of her neck said everything. The fact that she was there, willing to share his pain.

"Oh Ben." Breha uttered quietly as she felt his tears fall against the skin of her neck. Breha held him like that for as long as he needed. For as long as he needed to vent his distress she would be there.

"He hasn't even tried." Ben muttered quietly after he let go of Breha. "He's just going to leave."

"That's who he is." Breha said sadly. Ben's gaze rose to meet hers. "I wish it wasn't." She added when she saw her brother's expression. She knew exactly what Ben was feeling. Their father had put her through the same emotional torment the first time he left. Breha cursed the man for making Ben feel the same pain.

Ben's lips pulled downwards at the corners into a frown as he opened his mouth to speak. But a sudden feeling cut him off. Breha's brow furrowed as she watched her brother register something that she couldn't. His eyes looked to be focussed somewhere else as he turned to look at the wall to his left.

"Uncle Luke's here." He announced having sensed the arrival of his uncle with the force.

A well-armed, muscular figure looked down at the extensive base from his vantage point on the hill. Whoever Relik had teamed up with after leaving Tessler had resources; Acer had to admit that much. He could see countess hangers embedded into the hills of the green planet and personnel moving between them. Even if Acer had been able to gather a large team, he now doubted that they would have been able to make a full frontal assault. He was relieved that he'd been forced to use stealthier tactics. Acer glanced back at his ship and smirked, the stealth modifications had made slipping past the planets sensors easy. And all it took was some smart flying once he'd entered the atmosphere and no one saw a thing.

The red headed man watched the base for only a moment longer as a ship touched down on the tarmac before he turned swiftly on his heel. A hundred metres or so from his ship a relay station was set up. From the outside it looked like a simply metal container, 2 metres by 2 meters by 3 metres. But once he opened up the front panel he was met an array of screen, wires and components. Skilled fingers began tampering with the mechanics within the relay station. Once he was finished he replaced the panel and retreated to a hiding spot. Now all he had to do was wait.

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

 **Hay everyone, not as long a chapter as I normally post but I wanted to give you all something for Star Wars day aaaaand this chapter was quite important in order to set up things for the next chapter. Xx**

 **To JunJunyil: You and me both! I can't believe how far this fic has come. To think this started with me hearing a single line in TFA haha. I'm so glad you like how this story has progressed. I can only promise much more to come. Hmmmm. As for who I'd cast for Breha, when I was developing her character I never had one person in mind… I used a few different muses to blend her character: Jessica Biel, Jessica Alba, Michelle Rodiguez & Zoe Saldana were probably the main 4 and the various strong female characters they've acted. **

**To KeepingThemAtBay: Yes BB-8 :D I was so happy to write that little droid into the fic haha. And Acer is coming for her! Dun-dun-dun. Be reassured that I have an epic battle scene played out and whilst I won't confirm anything … know that I smirked at your mention of Ben :D**

 **To Sky65: BB-8 is the cutest little droid even made… Like that little ball pulled off the puppy eyes haha. Breha and Poe truly are oblivious but I think the pair are just about realising that other means something to them haha. Thank you for your support!**

 **To marflark: Yay! I had quite a few ideas knocking around about where to stage the reunion… the workshop seemed the most appropriate so I'm glad you agree! I hope you have a good time on the road… here's a mini chapter to whet your appetite!**

 **To Bluedog02: Naw! Your reviews are the cutest! So glad that you like the chapter and the Poe-Breha reunion!**

 **To the Guest from May 2** **nd** **: Thank you!**

 **To Malorne-10: Based on their life styles I have no doubt that Poe and Breha will continue to save each other from certain death countless times haha. However, Poe is fresh from a hospital bed so I have someone else in mind to help Breha with this little fight… But you are right, Poe saving Breha would be adorable.**

 **To Ardoa88: Naaaw… well here's a small mid week update to whet your appetite… I am still aiming to have the next chapter out for Monday though! Fingers crossed. And thank you! I've seen a few people come around from anaesthesia so I took a lot of inspiration from that for the bacta haha. I was half tempted to have Breha slap him but after I'd written that version out it didn't seem in character so I ended up changing it haha. It hasn't been mentioned and thank you! I do go over my writing quite a bit and try to weed out the errors, I can never seem to get all of them though haha… As for who Maya's brother is… Wait and see ;) – In all honesty I've not fully made my mind up haha. I think the true decider for that question will be episode VIII. And apologise again for another cliff hanger… I'm just full of them this week… I promise there will be action in the next chapter!**

 **To cerileneross: No need to apologise! And thank you for reviewing! So glad that you liked the reunion and felt the pacing of it was right :D I love writing BB-8. I've had the Poe-BB-8 meeting scene in my head for weeks now and I could finally get it written haha. Thank you for your review**

 **To feelthatfire: Yes! Let's celebrate Poe's return! And I love that little droid. I've been dying to write the Poe-BB-8 scene for weeks now haha. And yes, Poe and Breha are getting affectionate… the two knucklheads are finally starting to realise that the other is important to them haha. There is heavy drama to come, so much that I've broken it up between this mini chapter and the next one.**

 **To JustDreamAboutIt: Apologise for another cliff hanger! But I am aiming to get the next chapter out at the weekend so you shouldn't have to wait long! Thank you for the review.**

 **To the Guest from May 3** **rd** **: Gah! Glad you liked the chapter. It felt right being able to write a Poe/BB-8 scene :D and yes! Lots of action to come I promise.**

 **To LoveFiction2016: I can only say that I want the Poe-Breha romance to be as believable as possible. So I'm not going to rush them getting together… But they are definitely starting to realise that the other is important to them.**


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter 21**

"It's good to see you again Luke." Leia forgot formalities and greeted her twin with hug. Much like Ben, Leia had sensed her brother's arrival before his ship even entered the atmosphere. She'd excused herself from Admiral Ackbar's presence in the command centre and headed straight for the tarmac to greet him. The Admiral had arrived only a short while before Luke.

"And you Leia," Luke returned the hug. He couldn't help but smile down at her as they stepped away from each other. There was a small movement to his side and Leia's gaze immediately fell to the teen standing beside her brother. "This is one of my padawan learners, Jura." Luke introduced after following Leia's gaze.

"It's an honour to meet you General Organa." Jura said politely, adding a small bow. Leia smiled softly at the blonde haired girl by her brother's side. It brought hope to her heart to see her brother and Jura stood side by side, looking like the Jedi of old. Both wearing clothes of beiges and browns and identical off-cream cloaks. They looked like the characters she used to imagine when her father would tell her tales of the Jedi when she was a child.

"It's lovely to finally meet one of my brother's students." Leia replied.

"Jura is one of my most talented students." Luke supplied, earning a blush from the padawan at his side. A mischievous glint sparked in Luke's eyes as he caught his padawan's reaction. Leia met his gaze and tried to hide her own amusement.

Jura was thankful when a black haired woman, dressed in equally dark clothes approached them. She must have only been a few years older than Jura but this stranger walked with a confidence of someone twice her age. Luke followed his padawan's gaze and blinked in surprise at the young woman striding towards him.

"Uncle Luke." Breha smiled when she caught her uncle's eye. She wrapped her arms around him, her fingers brushing against the soft material of his cloak. Luke overcame his surprise and smiled back at her, welcoming her into his arms just as he'd done with Leia. He couldn't believe how much his niece had changed. It was as she stepped away from him that he saw the real change in her. As a child Breha's eyes had always expressed everything she was feeling; even if she was trying to hide it. She'd attempted lying to Luke several times as a child, over petty things really, and had been frustrated when he saw through her every time. The young Breha had blamed it on his force powers. But in actual fact, she just couldn't hide the guilt from her eyes. So it unnerved the jedi when he looked into her gaze and was met with a guardedness. Something had aged the woman in front of him, he was certain of it.

"It's good to see you again." She greeted warmly.

"It's good to see you as well. You've grown up." He commented.

"It had to happen at some point." Breha shrugged with a wry smile. Her gaze then landed on the smaller teen by her uncle's side.

"This is Jura, a student of mine." Luke introduced. "Jura, this is my niece Breha." The mechanic blinked in surprise as the padawan bowed her head politely as a way to greet her. It wasn't often the mechanic was greeted with a bow. Nevertheless, Breha returned to gesture. A series of loud, excited beeps then sounded and brought a large grin to Breha's face.

"R2." She greeted the little droid as happily as it did her. She dropped to one knee to greet the astromech her smile growing as the droid beeped that it had missed her. "I've missed you too."

"You almost seem happier to see R2 than me," Luke said, an amused smirk pulling at the corner of his mouth. Breha looked up at him with a cheeky smirk pulling at her mouth.

"Only almost?" She asked as she rose to her feet once again. Leia shook her head slightly at her daughters humour.

"Have you seen Ben?" Leia asked before the girl could tease her uncle anymore. "I thought he'd be rushing to see Luke?" And normally that was the case. Ben typically bounced with excitement at any form of communication with Luke; be it a message or an actual visit. But not today. Ben's head was all over the place and he'd taken himself away to his room, on Breha's advice, to meditate. Breha was no expert with the force, but she was an expert on her brother. It was obvious to her that Ben needed time.

"He's meditating at the moment." Breha replied. "Figured we'd all be caught up in the meeting anyway." Leia nodded at Breha's explanation but the mechanic could feel Luke's speculative eyes on her.

"We should head over to the command centre. Admrial Ackbar and Commander Dameron are waiting for us." Leia said. The four had only taken a few steps when Breha's communicator sounded at her belt.

"Breha." She answered as they continued to head for the hanger exit.

"It's Lara," Lara introduced herself. "We've just had data come through that indicates communication relay station 2 is acting up. I'm going to head up there now, but I could do with a hand carrying the equipment up."

"Of course. Let me check who's available." Breha replied. She pulled a small data pad from her jacket pocket and quickly tapped her fingers across the screen. Luke noticed the furrow of her brow increase the more she tapped.

"Jura could assist your mechanic." Luke offered. Both Breha and Jura turned to look at Luke with surprise, albeit for different reasons. After a few moments pause Breha nodded and pocketed her data pad.

"Lara, my uncle's student Jura will accompany you to the relay station. You can meet her outside of the command centre." Breha replied.

"Thanks Boss." Lara replied.

"Thank you." Breha looked to her uncle before also looking to Jura to share the sentiment. It didn't escape the mechanics notice that the padawan looked fairly upset at not being allowed to attend the meeting. She could only wonder what her uncle's motives were.

The four arrived at the command centre and Lara was already waiting for them. Leia headed straight into the command room. Breha quickly introduced her mechanic to the padawan and the pair were soon on their way away from the central hub of the base. Breha once again caught the look Jura shot at her master. Once the pair had rounded the corner, Breha turned to her uncle and raised a questioning brow. He tried to refrain from smiling at her expression.

"Why did you bring her if you're just going to keep her locked out?" Breha asked.

"Jura is one of my most skilled students. She's strong with the force." Luke replied, only making Breha question even more why he was keeping his student from the meeting. Luke turned to look at his niece. "Social interaction on the other hand is in definite need of improvement." And suddenly it all made sense to Breha. The school Luke had set up was small and hidden, so Jura would have very little exposure to new people and customs.

"Well, you just sent her for a hike with the most sociable person on the base." Breha said with amusement. "Let's hope she doesn't talk your padawan to death." With that Breha turned and entered the command centre, her uncle only a few steps behind her.

Breha entered the side room that had been chosen for the meeting. Admiral Ackbar caught her attention first; the mon calamari commanded nothing but respect and given his decorated history he deserved it. Next to the admiral was, who she assumed to be, his second in command - a younger looking mon calamari. Her mother had taken her place, standing at the head of the table. Poe was a few paces away from her, standing tall with his arms crossed over his chest. He met Breha's gaze the moment she entered the room. She remembered instantly how their last conversation had ended and could see the concern written across his face.

"Everything okay?" He asked quietly as Breha stopped next to him. She took her attention away from the table and turned to look up at Poe. She felt her stomach twist as she saw the obvious worry in his eyes. The unexplainable urge to wrap her arms around him filled her mind and she found herself craving the warmth of his embrace.

"It will be." She replied. "And we will get a chance to talk." She promised him. Breha looked up at him for another few moments before movement in the door way caught her eye. Her eyes widened in surprise as she watched Han Solo and Chewbacca stroll into the command centre. She was certain he would have hightailed it away from the base by now. Her surprise quickly turned to irritation and her teeth ground together as she watched her father casually join them around the table. All she could think of was the pain he was putting Ben through.

"What did you do?" Luke asked Han as the smuggler stopped next to the jedi.

"Hello to you too." Han scoffed.

"Han." Luke pressed and his eyes flickered towards Breha. He could feel the woman's murderous glare towards her father. It was like she was screaming it from her presence in the force.

"Why do you always think it's me that's done something?" Han asked. Luke merely shot him an incredulous look. Han sighed. "She's got a thing with that pilot and got pissy when I asked her about it." Han explained. Luke turned to look at Breha and the commander once again. The irritated woman had stopped glaring at her father and had begun talking to the pilot. Luke noticed that a lot of the irritation had faded as a result of talking to the pilot. A soft smile pulled at his lips. If commander Dameron was anything like his mother, Luke knew Han had nothing to worry about.

"She'll come around." Luke assured his friend. Han snorted.

"Not any time soon. The girl's as stubborn as her mother." Han replied dryly. Amusement pulled at the corners of Luke's mouth.

"It's good to see you again Han." Luke said.

"Yeah, you too Luke." Han admitted.

"Since everyone is here, let's begin." Leia called the room to attention. All eyes fell to the General. "You have all been briefed on the recent events that occurred at the Tessler races. We anticipated with the closure of the clone factories that the First Order would make other attempts to rebuild their forces. That has been realised." Leia began. She tapped on the screen in front of her causing a map to be projected from the centre of the table. Breha easily recognised the star map location of Tessler. "Thanks to Commander Dameron's reconnaissance mission we have identified some of the routes and locations the First Order are 'recruiting' their soldiers from." On the map a series of red dashed lines appeared on the map.

"We need to intercept those routes." Ackbar said. There was a general hum of agreement around the table. "We must make every effort to stop the First Order from growing their forces."

"When we intercept these locations the First Order will look to recruit from elsewhere." Luke said.

"We're going to have to do some reconnaissance as well." Breha nodded to her uncle. "Keep an ear to the ground for any new locations." There was a general hum of agreement once again. The table broke down into discussion about how best to organise the route interceptions and undercover work.

Leia opened her mouth to speak but a knock at the door interrupted her. The person on the other side waited for the General to call out for them to enter. Thomas, Leia's assistant, entered the room. He gulped slightly as the eyes of some of the most influential people in the resistance stared at him.

"I'm sorry to interrupt." Thomas began. "But Lara has been in repeated contact with the command centre. She seems to be in desperate need of Breha's assistance on repairing the communication relay." Breha's brow furrowed in concern and she looked to her mother.

"With that station down, we can't encrypt messages." Breha said. Leia's lips drew into a tight line. Not being able to encrypt messages meant there was no communication with anyone off-planet. It was too risky. "Lara would ask for someone else if she believed they would be able to help; she knows I'm preoccupied at the moment." Breha vouched for Lara.

"Go." Leia conceded. Breha nodded and breezed out of the room. Poe could just hear her ask Thomas if Lara had requested she bring any tools with her before the door shut behind her. With Breha gone the meeting continued, little did they realised that Thomas would be interrupting once again with more disturbing news later.

Breha hiked up the hill, weaving between thick tree roots as she did. When she reached the top, the communication relay stood out against the lush green background. The object was after all pure metal and obtrusive. Her pace slowed as she entered the clearing and became confused when she couldn't see Lara or Jura. Confusion quickly started to morph into concern as Breha couldn't see any signs of Lara even going near the relay station.

"Lara?" Breha called out. A foreboding shiver tingled at the back of her neck – something didn't feel right. Her fingers itched to reach for her blasters and she cursed the fact she hadn't worn them. They'd been stowed away in her room when she had returned from Tessler. She heard a slight scuff from behind her and tensed, whatever was behind her didn't feel friendly. Breha whipped around and ducked in time to dodge a shot from a blaster. Her eyes narrowed into slits as she laid her eyes on the dark dressed, red mohawked man who'd fired at her. The distance between them wasn't large so Breha charged at him, ducking to the side to avoid another shot before colliding her body with his. The collision almost winded her and she realised with some small horror that the man was almost entirely muscle. Her opponent now had weapons and brute strength to his advantage over her. Breha had to trust that she was quicker. Her hands shot forwards, one striking his wrist forcing his hand to open and drop the weapon. The other hit at a weak spot on his torso forcing him to release a grunt. Her leg swept out to trip him but he anticipated the combination and caught the limb, pulling her forwards. He raised his fist to connect with her face as he broke her balance but she managed to twist her body and duck. Instead of making full contact with her face his fist only glimpsed the side of her jaw. Pain exploded from the side of her face and Breha knew if she got caught behind the full power of one of his punches she'd be out like a light. Despite the pain, she ducked, grabbed the fallen blaster as she rolled away. She stood to face her opponent, blaster now pointed at him.

"I can see why he liked you." Acer chuckled dryly as he pointed his second blaster at her. Charging him like that had been ballsy, a tactic Veeta would have approved of. If only for the fact it would have entertained him. The pair now had each other in an armed standoff.

"Who are you?" Breha asked coldly. Acer smirked and flicked a switch subtly on the side of his blaster. Breha didn't see the movement, and she couldn't see the object it controlled. She did however noticed that her tattoos were now visible. Acer couldn't help but admit that Relik's tattoos were as beautiful as the rumours claimed. Her eyes widened before darting between Acer's blaster and her own. He must have modified the scope of the blaster to emit the wavelength of light required to view the ink. Now that she knew what to look for she found the switch on her blaster and flicked it. As she suspected Acer's chest, at least what was visible of it, was decorated in silver designs. "You were Veeta's vulture." She answered her own question. "What have you done with the two women who were up here?"

"The mechanic and the brat?" Acer asked. "They're alive… Just about." His eyes darted off to the side and before Breha could help herself she followed his gaze. She caught sight of an unconscious Lara and Jura, bounded together and partly hidden by the relay station. But Acer capitalised on her distracted state and fired. The blast had been aimed at her heart but Breha managed to raise the blaster in her hand. The blaster took the fire rather than her body; ultimately destroying the weapon and leaving her with a nasty bruise from the impact. But it spared her life. Logic told her to run; she was unarmed and ill-equipped to take on a vulture as decorated as the man in front of her. Despite knowing that, her instincts told her to dive towards Lara and Jura, which is what she did.

Breha skidded to a stop besides Jura and her eyes widened as she caught sight of a metal hilt sticking up from the padawan's belt. It wasn't just instinct anymore. It was like the lightsaber was a magnet and she was merely a piece of metal forced to fly towards it. Her hand gripped the lightsaber and pulled it from the padawan, igniting the green blade just in time to deflect a shot from Acer. She deflected the shot towards the relay station causing the station to spark and splutter as the bolt hit it. Whilst she knew that would be a pain in the arse to fix later; at least now central command would know that something was wrong at the station. Technical faults may send mechanics, but obvious component damage, the type only caused by blasters would send soldiers.

Acer's eyes widened at the lightsaber in her hands. The sleek weapon was something of myth and legend. The likelihood that Relik had trained in the forms of such a weapon were remote. Yet as he watched her weld the blade so smoothly to deflect his blasts he doubted his assumption. A growl escaped his throat as she deflected a shot to the relay station – they were going to have company soon. He began firing at her with renewed vigour, but to his frustration she deflected or dodged every bolt. He soon found himself on the retreat as she edged closer to him whilst dodging his blasts. He knew that if she pulled him into close combat, whilst she had a lightsaber and he only had blasters, she would gain the upper hand. The pair danced around each other for a few moments longer, chasing and weaving around the trees as Acer retreated through the forest. She was frighteningly agile, he realised, as he watched her move like water around him. She made a swipe down at him, catching the hem of his clothes as he rolled away and darted away from her. She chased after him and into the clearing Acer had landed him ship in. Her eyes narrowed as she spied the man sprinting to the ship. If he was from Tessler she couldn't let him escape; he could potentially have leads on the First Order. Plus, she still needed to beat his arse for injuring one of her mechanics.

Breha caught up to the man and gracefully swiped at him with the lightsaber. He turned around to face her as she was arcing and she fully expected him to roll away from the attack. To her surprise he pulled a staff around in a lower, quicker arc and parried her attack. Her lightsaber crackled in front of her as she held it against his newly drawn electrostaff. A smirk pulled at his lips and he kicked her firmly, launching her away from him.

Breha spluttered a cough and she rose to her feet, wincing as she did. She had unfortunately been correct in her assumption that his blows would be powerful. If the sharp pain every time she inhaled was anything to go by her ribs had taken a battering. She glowered up at the man in front of her, the purple crackle from his electrostaff illuminating one side of his face. It brought a small amount of pleasure to Breha as she caught sight of a bruise already forming around his eye – no doubt that her other hits had done damage then. On a couple of occasions Acer had dodged the lightsaber, but opened himself up to a physical attack from one of her other limbs.

He came at her again, swinging the staff down at her as he engaged her in combat. He wasn't solely evading anymore and Breha noticed the much more ferocious change in his fighting style. He made a particularly violent swing with the business end of his staff towards her chest, she parried it with her lightsaber but it left her open to the kick he aimed at her head. Whilst she managed to raise and elbow so his foot made contact with that instead of her skull, the force still sent her sprawling to the ground. The lightsaber fell from her grasp and landed a few feet from where she lay on the ground.

Her vision blurred as she tried to pull herself to her feet but the world seemed off kilter and spun around her. She could make out his dark frame stalking towards her.

"You've grown weak Relik." Acer hummed as he stopped beside her and kicked her so that she fell onto her back. "And soft." He kicked her again, delighting in the gurgling groan of pain that burst from between her lips. "You've taken everything from me." He snarled as he raised his electrostaff right above her heart. Breha could hear the buzz of electricity and a cold terror ran down the length of her being.

"No!" A voice cried as Acer swung the electrostaff downwards. Breha winced, anticipating pain like no other, but she felt nothing. Her vision blurred back into focus as the electrostaff fell from Acer's hands and landed on the ground next to her. She stared up at him in confusion as she clawed at his neck and gurgled chokes sounded from him. Vaguely remembering that there had been a shout she turned around and her eyes widened. Ben stood a few metres behind her, arm outstretched and pointed towards Acer, a dark look across his face.

"Ben." She whispered as she struggled through the pain in her side to sit up. She glanced back at Acer who was turning a worrying shade of purple and the gurgled chokes became less frequent. "Ben." She repeated, louder as she stumbled on shaky legs towards her brother. She reached his side but his concentration was still on Acer. Glancing back at the male vulture Breha saw that he was no longer clawing at his neck and looked to be unconscious. "Ben. I'm safe, you can let go." She gripped her brother's shoulders. The physical contact seemed to pull him from his concentration and he dropped Acer from his force grip. Breha heard Acer fall to the floor and pulled her brother into a tight hug. She could feel him shaking in her grasp.

"I've never felt you that scared or in that much _pain_ before." Ben murmured against her shoulder. Breha's heart clenched and she held him tighter, blinking away the tears that brimmed on her lower lashes. She pulled away from him, to hold his face in her hands, making sure that she had his gaze firmly locked with hers.

"I'm safe now." She assured him. She felt Ben calm within her grasp.

"Is he?" Ben asked fearfully as he looked over her shoulder at Acer. Breha's frown returned as she let go of her brother and moved to Acer's side.

"He's alive." She stated when she found a weak pulse on the man's neck.

"Breha!" Both Solo siblings looked up as multiple people entered into the clearing. A sardonic smile pulled at Breha's lips. Now the cavalry arrived. They would have been alerted after she blew the relay station. Breha noted with shame how poor the land response of the resistance was. If it wasn't for her brother sensing her distress she'd be dead.

Breha turned to Ben. She owed him her life.

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

 **To marflark: In my original plan I was going to just have it as one epically long chapter, but with Star Wars day falling mid-week I figured what better way to celebrate than by releasing a mini chapter :D I hope this chapter lives up to the hype! I enjoyed writing Luke into the fic as well… officially feels like a Star Wars fic now haha.**

 **To Malorne-10: Glad I could make your day! Thank you! One of the best compliments I can receive is that I've written the canon characters in character. I always get a bit nervy when I introduce a canon character to the fic (like Luke & Ackbar in this chapter) and wait for reviews to see if I got them in character or not. I know the frustration of the slow burn romance! It's so much more believable… but equally, you just want them to be together haha. Hope you enjoyed this chapter and rest assured I have plans to take this fic through TFA. **

**To The Guest from 5** **th** **May that commented on my writing style & Ben-Breha: Thank you so much for your review. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, big Ben development! **

**To the Guest from 5** **th** **May that commented on Poe's love of BB-8: Thank you! And it was Poe's line in TFA that BB-8 is a "one of a kind droid" that inspired this entire fic haha. And I'm glad you appreciate the Kylo Ren origins in this fic. I have no idea how it will match up to the canon when episodes 8 &9 are released… but this is my take on it anyway :D **

**To the Guest from 6** **th** **May: Oh wow! I am flattered beyond words to be placed up there with actual accomplished authors! Wow… just wow! I'm so pleased to hear that you like the development of the Poe-Breha relationship. May the force be with you.**

 **To Bluedog02: First, no need to apologise! Thank you so much for reviewing period. :D I can't explain the warm fuzzies I get every time I get a review for the fic. Your constant support for this fic is incredible. Second, so glad that you like Maya, I figured she's a character that's going to go one of two ways: you're either going to love her or hate her… But as an author not all of my characters can be likable haha. And yeah, heavy hints about Breha's past. Unfortunately shit decided to hit the fan and she and Poe still haven't had a much needed conversation! Hope you enjoyed the brief Ben-Breha in this chapter! And thank you so much! So glad that I'm getting the Solo/Organa family in character, their so iconic I really don't want to muck them up haha. Yes! I've been looking forward to writing Luke into this fic since about chapter 4 and finally he's here. Once again thank you so much for your review and I hope you enjoyed this chapter.**

 **To Lala: Gah! Thank you :D I do thoroughly check my writing for spelling/grammar mistakes and whilst I'm sure some slip through the gap it's good to hear that they're not that noticeable! It's also great to hear that you feel I've captured the universe (bacta and all) really well. I genuinely put a lot of research into my characters and my internet history is rather nerdy as most of the pages are Wookiepedia and other star wars fact sites :') Yes! Another supporter of the slow burn romance! Much like researching the Star wars universe to make the setting believable, a slow burn is the only way to make romance believable :D Thank you for your review/favourite/follow and I hope you enjoyed this chapter.**

 **To Ardoa88: Wow, flattered and shocked that you re-read the fic! And yes, your feelings are correct, climactic chapter above! I'm glad you enjoyed the filler and I hope this chapter lived up to the hype!**

 **To RglStarwars: Holy Cr*p! I read the first sentence of your review and almost did a spit-take in shock! That's incredible praise! Thank you! I'm thrilled that you love my writing form and my original character. Thank you for your encouragement and I hope you enjoyed this chapter!**

 **To the guest from 7** **th** **May who asked what Poe was thinking about Breha's past: Unfortunately Poe and Breha haven't had a chance to discuss her past or how Poe feels about it. They've had to prioritise their duties to the resistance and then obviously Breha had her encounter with Acer. All of your questions should be answered in the next chapter though!**

 **To JustDreamAboutIt: Thank you for your review and here you go!**

 **To the guest from 7** **th** **May who asked about Acer's plans: I love hearing peoples predications! And there is your answer my friend! I hope you enjoyed the chapter.**

 **To feelthatfire: … Sorry, I think I just destroyed some of Ben's goodness. *ducks behind couch*. I hope you enjoyed that chapter anyway.**

 **To Lovefiction2016: Thank you! Hope you enjoyed this chapter.**


	22. Chapter 22

**Chapter 22**

Kit's medical ward went from tranquil to hectic in a matter of seconds. Where there was once empty, neat beds there was now two women laid on top of two of them, a team of medical staff tending to them. Kit had floated close to his new patients to double check that his junior medics weren't in over their heads, but the silver eyed medic was soon convinced that the two women were stable enough. In fact from the sounds of it they were simply sedated, with no obvious signs of serious trauma. His brow had furrowed at that revelation. From the brief report Kit had been given prior to receiving his new patients he was led to believe that a very violent man had managed to sneak past the base surveillance and attack three people before finally being subdued. The women's injuries didn't match that picture.

"Tox results are back." One of Kit's juniors announced. Kit watched as the young woman scanned the data pad in front of her before turning and beginning to set up an IV drug infusion. He picked up the data pad and scanned over the results, the two women had just been sedated. Before he could question it any further the medical door burst open once again and a single gurney was pushed rapidly into the room. On the bed was a broad, red haired man Kit had never seen before, so this must be the attacker. Unlike the women the man's injuries were severe.

"I'm having trouble securing his airway." One of Kit's other juniors announced as he stood at the head of Acer's bed. "There's a lot of swelling." The junior looked up to Kit, but the senior medic had moved from the end of the bed to join the junior at the patients head.

"Let me have a look." Kit asked politely. The junior stepped out of the way and watched curiously as Kit inspected the man's throat before readying a bolus of concentrated antihistamine-synthase and injecting it straight into the swelling. The result was almost instantaneous as the swelling decreased. "Try it now." Kit moved out of the way and observed his junior as he secured the airway. The antihistamine-synthase began to wear off quite quickly, but due to the airway being secure, the swelling could only push outwards making the man's neck almost double in size.

"Thank you," Kit's junior smiled up at him. Kit nodded.

"Continue your primary survey." Kit motioned with his hand towards Acer and returned to his position at the end of the bed. It soon became apparent that Acer had sustained a considerable amount of soft tissue damage with a few queried bone fractures. Whoever had engaged this man in combat had done a number on him. Speaking of, "I thought we were expecting a fourth patient?" Kit questioned another medic.

"We are." She replied. Kit's brow furrowed and he stepped away from the bay. Whilst the medical ward was now a flurry of activity it wasn't hectic, all of the patients were stable and being treated. He had his communicator in hand, ready to raise the question with central command when the doors to the medical ward opened yet again. Whilst the medic expected the General to make an appearance, he didn't expect her to be flanked by some of the most influential members of the resistance: Han Solo, Chewbacca, Luke Skywalker and Poe Dameron.

"Where are they?" Han was the first to speak, glancing around the medical ward. Kit motioned with his hand to the three unconscious patients on the bays behind them. Han rapidly turned around before whipping back to face Kit with a scowl on his face. "Don't get wise with me kid. Not them. Where are Ben and Breha?" Confusion smacked Kit in the face.

"They're not here." He replied. Kit's gaze flickered to the General who for the first time since he'd met her looked nothing like the resistance leader and every part the concerned mother.

"What?" Han ground out.

"They're supposed to be here." Poe said, his eyes never leaving Kit. When Thomas had interrupted the meeting for a second time, this time baring news of infiltration and confrontation, they had been informed that the dispatched squad had discovered Lara, Jura, Breha, the attacker and Ben. Thankfully, the attacker had been subdued and they were all being brought straight to medical. Or at least that was what they thought to be the case. Leia turned to look over the current patients in medical, swallowing thickly as she caught sight of the red haired man, specifically the bruising around his neck. She turned her gaze to Luke and shared with him a concerned gaze. Moments before Thomas had interrupted the meeting a second time the pair had felt a cold shift in the force presence around Ben. Leia could feel her breath hitching in her throat as she recalled the feeling, it was like watching her son falling over the edge of a chasm and being able to do nothing but watch as he tumbled out of her reach.

Maya curiously ventured out of the office connected to the medical wards. When the call came through that a number of patients were going to be entering medical Kit had asked her to wait in the office. He'd even provided her with a novel to read to entertain herself, but the buzz of activity on the other side of the door had been too large a temptation. Her eyes immediately found Poe – not Talis, as she'd been informed earlier – and she made her way to his side.

"Poe?" She questioned quietly, almost as if she was afraid of gaining the attention of anyone else other than the pilot. Poe turned to look down at the girl.

"They're not h-" Kit was interrupted as the medical doors opened once again only to reveal the missing persons themselves. His relief was short lived however as he immediately spied the blooming bruise along her jaw line, which was, no doubt, merely one of her minor injuries.

Breha stepped into medical alongside her brother and was greeted with the stares of seven people. _Oh boy_. Without faltering she strode forwards into the room, and much to Luke's dismay, she looked around the room with guarded, calculative eyes. She found her target and let her gaze roam head to toe along Acer, content to see that he was receiving the necessary care, they would need him awake and talking as soon as possible. She then also quickly glanced over Lara and Jura. Luke then turned his attention to Ben, trying to catch the young man's gaze but the dark haired boy was stubbornly refusing to look in his uncle's direction.

Maya's breath halted in her throat as she watched Breha stride into the medical wards. There was no denying it this time, no way to fool herself into believing she hadn't seen her face before. Maya had seen the same battle weary, cold and calculative expression before and the fact that she now shared the same room with her terrified her. Maya followed Breha's gaze as she walked towards them and couldn't help the small yelp that escaped her lips as she cast her gaze onto Acer's beaten form.

"Relik - It's you." Maya uttered. Her voice, so full of terror, stopped anyone else from moving towards Breha to welcome her warmly. Even Poe who had already taken a step towards Breha, her name falling from her lips in a breath, froze in place. "You're one of them." Maya yelled at the dark haired woman. Confusion rippled through the onlookers as they stared between a bruised Breha and an increasingly more agitated Maya. "Monster." Maya stepped backwards on shaky legs. Chewie groaned loudly in protest. Chewie wasn't the only one to show his anger at the young girls words, Ben stepped forward threateningly from besides Breha. The youngest Solo's reaction wasn't missed by Luke and the jedi's frown only deepened.

"Maya?" Poe was too shocked to even begin to comprehend where the younger girl's aggression was coming from.

"She's a danger to all of us!" Maya tried to explain to Poe.

"Poe get her out of here." Leia ordered swiftly. Poe looked towards Breha, obviously torn. Breha knew that look. It was the same expression she had pulled when they'd first returned with Poe from Tessler and been forced to go separate ways, she to debrief and he to medical. And just like she had done, Poe chose his duty to the resistance. Not that she expected anything different from him, he wouldn't be the man she knew if he didn't make that choice.

"Poe you have to trust me! She's a killer!" Maya yelled. A stillness fell over the medical ward only restarting once Poe had gripped Maya's shoulder and turned to lead her out of the room. Breha visibly flinched at that one and for a second Luke witnessed her guard slip and could see the raw pain hidden behind her walls. Ben had been about to step forwards and drag the girl out of the room himself since Poe seemed so incapable of moving, but the kick of pain and regret that shot out from his sister held him in place. Worried eyes turned to look at her as Ben remained by her side.

"Remind me why exactly we brought back that stray?" Han asked dryly as he watched Poe and Maya disappear.

Ben edged a little closer to Breha, feeling more than seeing the torment within her. He was gentle as he reached out with the force and offered her comfort like he had done many times before. Luke could only watch in surprise as he felt the strong connection the pair shared. He knew from experience that siblings could share stronger force bonds than most, but what he had with Leia paled in comparison to the two siblings in front of him.

"Breha, Ben are you okay?" Leia asked, ignoring Han's comment. At the voice of her mother Breha pulled herself from her own mind and focussed on the General.

"Yeah," Breha exhaled. "We are." She glanced down at Ben.

"You're not okay until I say you're okay, Breha." Kit frowned, he'd been analysing Breha and Ben since they'd entered his medical ward. Breha turned to look at Kit and simply nodded. The medic only became more concerned, for Breha to admit that she needed his all clear must mean that she knew she was carrying significant enough injuries. "Ben?" Kit turned his eyes to the teen.

"I wasn't hurt." Ben shook his head.

"In which case, may I speak with you Ben?" Luke asked pleasantly enough. Any other time that phrase would have just been an uncle wishing to catch up with his nephew, but given recent events, Ben and Breha glanced at each other wearily. Ben, after a moment's pause, nodded to his uncle. Luke smiled, "I'm relieved that you are okay Breha." He said to her before turning and making his leave with Ben.

"Come on Breha, let me check your injuries." Kit said, not at all happy with the woman standing around untreated in his medical department. Breha didn't object as he led her to an empty bay and she gingerly sat on the bed, careful to keep her back and ribs in a single position, Han and Leia followed her into the bay. "Where does it hurt?" Kit asked as he picked up a scanner.

"Ribs, both sides." She answered simply. "I took a knock to the head as well, didn't lose consciousness though" She added. Kit's frown deepened as he began his inspection.

"You should have come straight here." He frowned.

"I know." She agreed.

"So why didn't you?" Han asked, annoyance seeping in where concern used to be. Breha noticed the change in his tone and met him with a hard stare.

"I needed to ensure our guest over there was alone." She replied. Her eyes that fell to her mother. "It appears he sabotaged the relay station to draw out a mechanic. Once Lara and Jura arrived he overpowered them and had Lara make the call requesting me. I suspect it was me he was after." Leia's brow furrowed in concern. "He was Tut Veeta's Vulture mechanic, with Veeta gone, he would have lost everything, a loss he blamed on me."

"How could he know it was you, no one knew who we – Pav!" Han realised. "Son of-"

"Han. That isn't helping." Leia scolded.

"Pav would have been the only one who could confirm it was us." Breha agreed.

"I knew he was going to sell us out!" Han pointed his finger at Chewie. Chewie groaned in reply.

"No." Breha shook her head, flinching as Kit hit a particularly tender point at her side.

"Sorry." Kit murmured.

"Pav wouldn't simply sell us out." Breha shook her head, she recalled what he had whispered to her. "For him to reveal us, his life will have been threatened… he may even be dead." She looked down sadly. She shook her head and looked up to meet her parents gaze once again. "But, even with our names, there should have been no way for anyone to find us here. No one knew our location."

"So how did he find us?" Leia asked.

"That, is a very good question." Breha looked up at her mother with concerned eyes. "One he needs to answer as soon as he's awake."

"How is our guest?" Leia asked Kit.

"Stable." Kit replied. "Extensive soft tissue damage and fractured bones. The swelling and bruising around his neck was the largest concern, but that's under control now."

"What about Lara and Jura?" Breha asked.

"Perfectly fine actually." Kit said earning surprised stares from the other three. "No physical injuries and their Tox screens revealed a simple sedative agent in their systems. They should be awake in the next half hour or so."

"…That doesn't make sense." Breha mumbled as she turned her eyes back to Acer. He had no reason _not_ to physically harm them – physical harm would have made subduing them and forcing Lara to make the call to central command easier. Why the hell had he been _kind_ to them?

"Yeah, well you can ask him later." Kit set the scanner aside. "I need you to sit back so I can treat you. I'm really not happy with the state of your ribs." Breha could only look up at him and nod.

"Breha." Leia spoke quietly, halting her daughter's movements. "Maya called you Relik." She said simply. There was no question asked, but there didn't have to be. Breha could tell by the way her mother looked at her, the way the air seemed to thicken 10 fold around them, that there were countless questions running through Leia's mind. Breha glanced to her father, he had seen the tattoos on her skin, had read the truth about what she had done. Han's lips were pulled into a tight line and he found himself unable to hold his daughters gaze. As her father's eyes dropped to the floor a cold chill settled deep in Breha's gut – shame… regret.

"That was who I was, at Tessler." Breha replied quietly. "Seeing that man and me together in the same room must have made her remember." Breha swallowed. "I don't blame her for reacting the way she did. I was a horrible person at Tessler." Her eyes shot back to Han. "You've seen the proof."

"Breha-" Leia began.

"You should speak to Poe and Maya about our guest, they should know him from Tessler." Breha interrupted her. "I have also already informed Admiral Ackbar of developments and sent Iivan up to the stealth ship to pick it apart." And just like that Breha wasn't playing the part of her daughter, she was playing the part of the commander mechanic. Leia couldn't help the pained look that passed over her eyes as she nodded towards Breha.

"Right, thank you Breha." She nodded. "Take good care of her Kit."

"Of course General." Kit agreed and waited as Leia, Han and Chewie left the bay. The wookie had groaned on his way out, earning him a small thanks from Breha. It didn't escape Kit's notice that Breha's shoulders slumped ever so slightly once her parents had left. "The treatment is going to require you to be bare from the waist up, would you prefer a female medic?" Kit asked.

"You're fine Kit." Breha managed a weak smile of amusement. Kit nodded and drew the curtain around the bay. He turned back into the bay and readied the equipment as Breha slowly removed her jacket, top and bra. Kit rounded her bedside with his equipment and let his medically trained eyes roam across her torso, his fist clenching as he went from dark bruise to dark bruise, multiple contusions marring her pale skin.

"I'm going to numb your side first, then inject concentrated bacta to the rib fractures. It will feel strange, like a dull pressure." He informed her. Breha nodded.

"So my head was okay then?" She asked as he began numbing her torso where he would need to inject the bacta, to her dismay there were quite a few places that needed numbing.

"Surprisingly yes. Apparently you're hard-headed." He replied. Breha scoffed.

"Must be hereditary." She said with dry amusement.

"You're not a big fan of your father are you?" Kit asked. Breha's eyes snapped to him as he readied the bacta injections, he met her gaze. "I'm not an idiot Breha, I've seen the way you act around him." He answered her unspoken question. Breha exhaled heavily and turned to look away from him. Kit sighed. "I don't know what he's done to lose your faith in him. But you should know that he looked ready to tear this medical ward apart with his bare hands when he arrived and you and your brother weren't here."

As Kit expected, Breha didn't reply to his words, but he could tell from the look on her face that they resonated deeply with her. The rest of her treatment went by in silence and soon enough Breha was redressing herself, nodding as Kit warned her that her ribs would be fragile for a day or so and not to stress them.

"Thank you," Breha said finally once Kit was finished. Kit paused in front of her as she stood from the bed.

"Just doing my job Breha." He smiled down at her.

"I'm not just thanking you for patching up my ribs." She managed a weary smile. Kit smiled softly down at her.

"Then you're welcome." He replied. Kit then extended a hand, cupping her neck in his large palm so that his finger rested on the line of her jaw and his thumb gentle stroked over the blooming bruise. Wide eyes peered up at him from beneath dark lashes. "And Breha, no matter what Maya remembers about who you were… Know that you, right now, are a good person." And with that he turned and left the Bay, leaving the curtain closed for privacy. Breha could only blink, dumbfounded, as Kit disappeared and she replayed his words in her head. They replayed over and over until it registered with her who Maya was currently talking to and the horrific picture she would be painting for him.

"Shit." Breha cursed quietly as she slipped from the bay and went in search of Poe Dameron.

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

 **To KeepingThemAtBay: Yay! So glad you enjoyed the action scene, it was great fun to write and I was hoping I paced the turning point of the fight correctly :D And yes, Ben had his first dabble with the dark side and Luke did indeed feel the fluctuation in the force. He and Ben have gone for a rather serious conversation… and whilst I won't confirm or deny your prediction that Ben will leave to train with Luke… I will say, that that would make sense haha. And I wish I could have written a Poe-Breha mushy chapter with him doting on her with BB-8 (sighs) but unfortunately Maya and rehashings of Tessler have gotten in the way! As for Acer he's just full of surprises! Hope you enjoyed this chapter… Not going to lie a post heavy action chapter is always hard to write as there are some many emotions flying all over the place!**

 **To JunJunyil: Yeah, I celebrated Star wars day with a mini chapter haha and there is no need to apologise for not reviewing! Thank you for reviewing the amount that you do! Thank you so much for complimenting how I write action sequences as well. That's a skill I've really tried to develop recently :D And yes! Acer has been caught and is currently being held by the resistance. I'm curious as to where you think the storyline is heading! I do indeed have intentions for this fic to continue through into TFA … and depending on the plot of episodes 8 &9 possible all the way through the new trilogy :D **

**To JustDreamAboutIt: I know! Poor Ben and all the feels and the stuggle!**

 **To Sam0728: So Poe has gone for a long talk with Maya and has no doubt discovered who Breha is… As for her tattoos… there is definitely one other person who I plan to see them in this fic. Hope you enjoyed this chapter.**

 **To RglStarwars: Yay :D thank you so much, writing action sequences is something I've tried to improve. You and me both! I have been dying to get Luke into this fic since chapter 1 haha. And not going to lie, I loved writing the Han/Luke scene haha. Thank you so much, hope you enjoyed this chapter. As for hairstyles, I think it's brilliant that you copy the hair of characters you enjoy :D Now for Breha's hair I imagine, large barrel like curls (dark brown/black) that reach just below her shoulderblades, cut into long layers. Typically Breha is a busy mechanic so the curls are pulled up into a messy bun on the crown of her head. But recently, such as her confrontation with Acer I imagine her going in to a fight with her hair tied back into a pony tail with plaits along her scalp – hope that helps!**

 **To Malorne-10: You are more than welcome haha, had to celebrate starwars day somehow haha. I agree it would have been super mushy and romantic to have Poe save her and I probably would have swooned… But it unfortunately made more sense for Ben to find and save her. And don't worry, I'm sure there's still plenty of trouble for Breha and Poe to find themselves in where they have to watch eachother's backs. You are more than welcome for the comment haha, so glad it made your day :D Your review make mine! Hope you enjoyed this chapter.**

 **To Sky65: Thank you for the review! Hope you enjoyed this chapter.**

 **To Bluedog02: Wow… I don't think I've ever rendered anyone speechless before haha! Yay! So good to hear I got Luke in character! And even happier to hear the Acer-Breha action sequence was amazing :D I've really been working on writing action sequences! Haha. Oh my God! Gaaah! Breha as a role model has made my day… no week… no year! Haha. Holy crap… to consider this canon is incredible, like … now I'm speechless haha! Thank you so much!**

 **P.S – So glad you enjoy my replies haha, I love you reviews, they always bring a smile to my face :D**

 **To the Guest from 9** **th** **May: I completely agree, Luke and Ben are adorable :D Thank you for your review, hope you enjoyed this chapter.**

 **To Ardoa88: Happy Monday :D gah! So glad I got Han-Luke interaction correct! So very glad you enjoyed this chapter, it was very action heavy and action sequences are something I've worked very hard to improve on. As for Breha remaining independent I think this chapter proves that. There are countless people on the base who were worried for Breha's safety but just like any X-wing pilot she still completed her duty for the resistance. And simply Yes! Yes! Yes! You should definitely go for writing your fic! You need to tell me when you post the first chapter! … And I think re-reading just became one of the ultimate compliments an author can receive… I feel all mushy inside haha. Hope you enjoyed this chapter… I found this one quite hard to write actually.**

 **To the Guest from 10** **th** **May who mentioned the Luke-Han reunion: Yes! *fist punches the air* So glad I managed to get both Luke and Han in character and amuse you! And there's a whole new side to Breha being pulled out of the woodwork at the moment! Hope you enjoyed this chapter.**

 **To the Guest from 10** **th** **May who spoke about re-reading: Gaaah! I think my ego just exploded. Seriously! A book! That's an unbelievably massive compliment! Thank you so so much :D Hope you enjoyed this chapter.**

 **To marflark: Thank you! I did enjoy writing bad-ass, butt-kicking Breha haha and so pleased the modified blasters were something you weren't expecting… I toyed with a few ideas of how to make the tattoos visible and this seemed the most appropriate. So pleased to hear I got Han-Luke in character and I hope this continued! I found this chapter really hard to write… there were so many reactions and emotions to consider! Haha Hope you enjoyed the chapter anyway!**

 **To feelthatfire: Yay! So glad, I was concerned loads of people would shout at me for Ben's dabble with the dark side haha He's just too emotionally aware of those closest to him – not dissimilar to Anakin in that respect. I agree there needs to be more Breha-Poe… stupid Maya getting in the way. I can assure you though, next chapter will be Poe-Breha heavy. Author's promise.**

 **To MasonJ: Yay! Thank you so much! Hope you enjoyed this chapter**

 **To the Guest from 11** **th** **May: :D :D :D a few people were expecting Poe to come to her rescue… and whilst that would have been lovely and romantic… It made so much more sense for it to be Ben coming to her rescue. Poor poor, super emotionally aware Ben. Hope you enjoyed this chapter!**

 **To LoveFiction2016: Thank you so much, hope you enjoyed this chapter.**


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter 23**

Poe's head swam and not in the pleasant way it did every time he sat in the cockpit of his X-wing. No, this was more like the tide of information had swept over him and pulled him deep into its depths. It tossed and turned him around until he could barely register which way was up and which was down, it all just seemed to swim around him. His eyes turned up to the ceiling of the empty corridor and his hand swept along his jaw, feeling the stubble underneath his fingers. Breha had warned him that her past was dark, but what Maya had said painted a darker past than he had even dared to imagine. His stomach twisted uncomfortably as he recalled the sequence of events that had caused his head to swim. It begged belief that so much could change in such a short period of time.

He'd pulled Maya from the med bay and harshly whispered to her to keep her voice down. The girl had promptly ignored him and continued to babble about how dangerous Relik was, how he needed to listen to her and go back to subdue the dangerous vulture. Maya was still begging him to listen to her when he pulled her into an empty break room.

"Maya, sweetie, you've got to start making some sense and you better start making it quickly." Poe had narrowed his eyes on her once the door to the break room had closed.

"She's one of them Poe." Maya said, eyes still wide. "Her name is Relik and she's one of Tut Veeta's vultures." Poe's blinked in surprise at her response.

"… And you only remember this now?" He raised a sceptic eyebrow. Maya huffed in frustration, realising that the man in front of her didn't believe a word of what she was saying.

"It was a few years ago Poe, and I think part of me didn't want to recognise her." Maya shuddered as she recalled the image of the fearsome vulture. At Tessler she'd been in the same vicinity as Relik only once and even that encounter had been enough to give Maya nightmares for weeks. The two women had been on opposite ends of the pecking order, Maya new to Veeta's 'employment' had been at the very bottom of the pile – less than dirt to the others who bore the gangsters mark. Whilst Relik was raised on a pedestal by Veeta himself. She was his prize possession, his diamond in the rough, and his perfected killer. Maya hadn't even properly met Relik, she'd merely seen her approaching from the opposite direction probably heading to get another tattoo, but the approaching threat of the woman had been more than enough to send Maya sprinting in the opposite direction. After than Maya made sure to never been in the same vicinity as the vulture again. Not that that effort spared her much, Maya still saw Relik on the big screens every time she competed. Relik was still talked about everywhere Maya went. Tessler was always filled with whispers of Relik's latest success in the races as well as the rumours of the side jobs she did for Veeta. If a rival gang lost mechanical equipment Relik must have been the one to sneak in and take it; if a racer was sabotaged before a race it must have been Relik who sabotaged it; if someone went missing it must have been Relik who took them. Of course there was never any proof, but Relik never dispelled the rumours either, so they just grew and grew. Maya was in no way going to risk her neck to find out if they were true.

"But it is her Poe. I'm certain of it." She begged with her eyes for Poe to believe her. Poe frowned deeply as he eyed the girl in front of him. He could tell by the look in the young girl's eyes that she was desperate for him to believe her. Poe also couldn't deny that Breha had spent time at Tessler some years previously, that coupled with the fact Breha herself had warned him that her past was tainted led him to his next question.

"Who's Relik, Maya?" He asked lowly. Maya relaxed somewhat, she could tell that Poe was at least coming around to believing her claims.

"Veeta's favourite vulture, the one he had before Acer." Maya replied. "You won't have heard of her because Veeta didn't allow anyone to speak of her after she left." Maya recalled how Veeta would have those who dared speak of his runaway possession beaten, often within an inch of their lives. "You once told me that you found Acer's methods barbaric, she was worse Poe."

"Breha?" He couldn't help but interject disbelievingly. He couldn't picture it. When Poe thought of Breha he conjured up memories of the pair of them chatting happily as she built BB-8, not a barbarian.

"She's cold and … efficient." Maya shuddered. "No other vulture ever stood a chance against her, hell even the pilots were at risk if she was out on the field. If they were in the way they got cut down and there was no saving you if Veeta put a price on your head." It was around then that Poe's head had begun to swim and it was only made worse as Maya kept talking. "He only had to ask and she'd steal for him, sabotage for him, fight for him… kill for him."

"Maya." Poe's voice was hoarse, he'd had enough. His tone caught her by surprise and she paused in her rant.

"Who is she to you?" Maya asked with narrowed eyes. Maya never got her answer as the door opened and in stepped the General, Han Solo hovered in the doorway.

"Maya, I need to speak with you." Leia's gaze wasn't angry as she stared at the young girl, but Poe wouldn't have said it was friendly either. Maya swallowed thickly.

"General?" Poe asked. Leia turned to her commander and her gaze softened.

"I'll speak with you later Poe. There's somewhere else you should be." She replied and whilst she didn't say it out loud Poe could practically feel the General pleading with him to speak with her daughter. Poe nodded stiffly and made his way out of the room, ending up next to Han Solo as the door shut behind him.

Han eyed the pilot next to him and sighed. The younger man was paler than usual and obviously shaken.

"So the stray told you then?" Han asked.

"You knew?" Poe's head shot around to face the older man.

"Not the details." Han shook his head. "But I've seen evidence." He added, his mind cast back to the tattoos. Poe shook his head slowly in disbelief. Han sighed. "Look kid, I'm not known for my advice but, just talk to her." Han looked down at the pilot. "You mean a lot her, even if she won't admit it. And based on how you're acting, even someone like me can tell she means a lot to you." And with that the smuggler clasped him firmly on the shoulder and breezed past him into the room.

Those had been the short series of events that led the usually level headed pilot to lean back against the corridor wall for support as his head swam. Poe inhaled deeply through his nose as he lowered his gaze from the ceiling and pushed away from the wall.

"Poe?" A tentative voice asked. He turned to see Breha hesitating a few metres from him, hesitating didn't suit her he briefly realised, before his lips pulled into a tight line as he tried to look for what Maya had spoken of. Breha felt her throat run dry under his scrutiny and didn't dare move. "I think we should talk now."

"Yeah." Poe nodded weakly. "I think we should." He echoed her words. With that agreed Breha turned and led the way to her workshop, one place on the base she knew they could have complete privacy and not be interrupted.

Breha entered the workshop first and it didn't escape Poe's notice that she almost instantly moved around to the other side of the work bench. She was distancing herself from him and something about that didn't sit quite right in his gut.

"What has she told you?" Breha dared to speak first, only fleetingly meeting his gaze before dropping back down to the items on her workbench that were suddenly very interesting.

"I don't want to hear it from her." Poe said lowly as he approached the workbench and stood on the opposite to Breha. "I want to hear it from you Breha." She drank in the way he said her name and finally let her gaze meet his.

"Did she tell you I was a vulture for Tut Veeta?" Breha asked in reply, based on the tightening of his jaw she assumed that Maya had. "That's who I was when I was there Poe. I was Relik, Tut Veeta's favourite and best vulture. I competed for him and I won for him." Breha closed her eyes as shame washed over her. "I did anything for him. I stole. I beat. I killed. All of it for him." She raged at the last part, her fist slamming down on the work bench.

Sometime during her speech Poe had made his way around the workbench so that he stood next to her. Breha's eyes shot open as a warm hand encompassed the fist she had clenched on top of the surface. She yanked her hand out from under his only for him to capture her in his arms and pulled her into his chest.

"No." Breha protested. Didn't Poe understand? She was horrible… a _monster._ "No."

"Breha stop." He whispered lowly in her ear. Breha not Relik. She stilled in his arms and his grip around her relaxed. "It won't-" Poe tried but he immediately knew he'd said the wrong thing when two furious eyes rose to meet him and two firm hands planted themselves on his chest and pushed away from him. He exhaled sharply at the force of which she pushed him away, she was a lot stronger than she looked.

"Won't have been that bad?" She finished with a sneer. "What would you possibly know?"

"I don't want you to beat yourself up over something that happened years ago." He tried to back track. Breha gaped at him – he didn't get it.

"Beat myself?" She struggled with the concept he was trying to argue. She shook her head and stepped away from him. For a brief moment Poe panicked that she was leaving when she head for the door, instead she reached for the control panel and lowered the lights to 50%. As she walked back towards him she roughly pulled her jacket from her shoulders and threw it angrily at the couch. The next item of clothing to be removed was her top, leaving her only in her bra.

"Breha!" Poe said in alarm as he everted his eyes to the ceiling and she continued to stride towards him. He heard something click but he still didn't dare look back at her.

"Look at me Poe." She all but growled. "Look at me and I dare you to try and tell me that I shouldn't beat myself up." His eyes lowered to her and he couldn't help but gasp. In her hand she held what looked to be the scope from a blaster but that was irrelevant in comparison to the intricate silver lines that decorated the entirety of her torso and from the looks of the pattern it fed onto her back and lower limbs as well. "I can never be too hard Poe; only ever not hard enough." Poe swallowed thickly as he gazed down at the woman in front of him. He couldn't help it as his fingers rose to trace the silver lines across her shoulders. He could read her time at Tessler like it was a book, it was after all written across her skin.

"Why?" Poe managed to ask, his eyes meeting hers. "Why would you do those things for a man like Tut Veeta?"

"I went native." Breha admitted. Poe's lips tightened into a thin line. He was familiar with notion of undercover agents ending up in too deep with their targets, he'd been there himself and experienced how blurry the lines could get.

"You and Veeta?" He couldn't keep the distaste from his voice.

"No, not like that." She assured him, the corner of her mouth quirking upwards with a weak smile. "Like you I quickly realised that Veeta was the person to get close to on Tessler, if there was anything underhand going on, Veeta had a hand in it. So that's what I did, I got close." She inhaled deeply. "I didn't even realise how deep I was slipping and it wasn't long until I craved that man's praise. I was a child, baying for a parent's affection." She scoffed at herself. Her fists clenched in frustration and she exhaled heavily. "This isn't meant to be an excuse for my actions." She dropped her gaze from Poe's and closed her eyes in shame. "Nothing can excuse what I've done. And I'll never be able to do enough to repent for it." Despite closing her eyes, a tear managed to escape from behind her lashes.

Poe's gaze softened as he looked down at the woman in front of him. His heart clenched a little behind his ribs when he caught sight of the tear that sneaked out from behind her closed lids. Before he could doubt or double guess his actions he lowered his head to centre of her chest, just between the points of her collar bones and placed his lips over Veeta's mark. She was barely letting him speak anyway. Breha gasped and her eyes shot open.

"What are you doing?" She found herself whispering, like she didn't have enough air in her lungs to be able to speak at full volume. Poe's head rose so that he could meet Breha's gaze, her eyes still glassy from unshed tears. One of the warm hands that had been resting on her shoulder rose to gently sweep away from the tear that had tracked down her face.

"A man's past doesn't define who he is." Poe said simply, wise words once spoken to him by his father.

"But-"

"Breha I met you after you had done all of those things at Tessler." He reminded her softly. The hand that had wiped away her tear brushed along her hairline before settling to cup her jaw. "And the woman I met, the woman I know, the woman you _are_ , is strong and smart and _good_." He bit his lip lightly as his eyes roamed over her face.

"Poe," She exhaled, seemingly unaware she'd said him name at all. Her stomach knotted tightly and seemed to pull all the way up to her throat, the pressure was stifling and her legs itched to dart away from the man in front of her. The damn pilot who she knew was responsible for knotting her stomach. But the frustrating man refused to drop her gaze, his dark eyes holding her in place.

"The past is there to learn from, not to define you." He finished. His gaze dropped from her eyes to her lips, but before she could even contemplate backing away from him he had her under a new spell. The soft lips that had been pressed to her collar only moments ago were now gently pressed against her own lips. A low hum of surprise vibrated in the back of her throat and her hands instinctively rose to the plains of Poe's chest. As quickly as Poe had pressed his lips to hers he pulled them away, stopping mere centimetres from her mouth, he was fully aware of the hands she had placed on him and was braced for her to push him away like she had done earlier. He was internally begging her not to. He risked meeting her gaze and was surprised to see her eyes darker than usual.

"Damn you." She whispered. For a moment he thought she was going to push him away but he was pleasantly surprised when the flat palms on his chest fisted his shift and pulled he towards her, their lips locking once again. The hands that had been on her shoulders lowered so that they could band around the small of her back and pull her closer to him. In the same motion one of her hands snaked up from his chest and threaded through the thick hair at the back of his head, he couldn't help the smirk that pulled at the corner of his mouth as he continued to kiss her. She felt his smirk against her lips and found it infectious, soon she was fighting a smirk of her own. Poe gently pulled away from Breha, placing a couple of chaste kisses to her reddened lips before hold her in his arms.

"You're timing is terrible." She scolded him, but the mirrored smirk still claimed her lips.

"Like you were complaining." He grinned down at her. Breha scoffed an amused laugh away before looking up at Poe gently. "Give Maya time." Poe assured her as he felt the mood shift to a more serious note. "Let her get to know you the way everyone else on the base does and she'll see you're not the person she remembers."

"I hope you're right." Breha agreed.

"I usually am." Poe smirked, earning an unamused raised eyebrow from Breha.

"A miracle really considering your ego must occupy almost all of the space in your head, leaving very little room for conscious thought." She fired back playfully. Poe's grin grew and he placed a chaste kiss on her lips.

"There's the Breha I know." He murmured against her lips, all traces of hesitancy, shame and disgust gone from her voice.

A couple of low beeps pulled the pairs attention from each other and they turned to the source of the noise. The pair could only grin as they spotted an unimpressed BB-8, Breha's abandoned jacket draped over the head of the droid.

"Sorry little guy." Breha apologised with a grin.

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

 **To JustDreamAboutIt: Sorry haha! If it counts for anything I hit myself in the feels. And here's the romance as promised in the story description haha. And I suspect you are right in the Kit-Breha vibes :D Hope you enjoyed the chapter – quite eager to get feedback on the romance scene, I feel like I'm a bit out of practise writing them.**

 **To RglStarwars: Thank you for your reviews, I had a massive grin on my face whilst reading it! Haha Yeah Maya is being super mean to Breha :'( but I sort of feel like her reaction is justified haha. And there's the Poe-Breha talk you've been waiting for. Hope you enjoyed it. I think your suspicions about how Kit feels towards Breha might be correct. But #PoeBrehaForLife is going strong in this chapter haha. And you are more than welcome about the hair information! It's brilliant to imagine someone, some where around the globe has been looking like Breha all week :D**

 **To feelthatfire: Here's your weekend update! :D and I too do love Kit. I've said before that Kit is possibly the character I identify the most with in Namesake so I just love writing his scenes haha. And all I'll say is wait and see about Acer, there are still fun and games to be had :D**

 **To the Guest from 16** **th** **May: Thank you! And wow! It's incredibly humbling to be told that a character I've written can be such a positive role model for someone! Honestly, I'm a little speechless. :D I hope you enjoyed this chapter, definitely a much rawer side to Breha in this one, because at the end of the day she is just human and has to have close friends help pull her through.**

 **JunJunyil: Wow! Epic review thank you haha. It always makes me smile when people start comparing waiting for chapters like waiting for TV episodes! And I'm glad to hear that my plot line keeps you guessing, wouldn't do to be too predictable haha. Interesting plot idea about Maya haha, that would actually be terrifying! And here is the intense Poe-Breha scene that you've been looking forward to, I hope you enjoyed it! I actually hadn't considered writing a Breha as Relik fanfiction. I might play around with some ideas and concepts and see if I think it's feasible! Thank you for the subscription!**

 **To marflark: Thank you so much! And I'm pleased to hear that Acer has peaked your interest. I really enjoy writing his character and can't wait to share the plans I have for him with you in later chapters! Wow! So relieved to hear that you think I nailed the chapter, 22 was one of the hardest chapters I've had to write, it went through so many edits haha. And whilst I didn't give you a Poe-Breha bedside reunion I hope this made up for it! I'm quite interested to see how you guys think I wrote the whole romance scene. I'm a little out of practise at it so complitments/constrictive criticism is welcomed. Hope you enjoyed the update anyway.**

 **To Bluedog02: Gah! Thank you for your review! How was that chapter for your Damerolo shipping heart? Haha. And I did warn people in earlier chapters that Maya may not be a character that everyone likes haha. I too adore writing Ben-Breha relationship scenes and it pains me so much to know what I going to have to write, stupid Kylo Ren and the darkside. And there was the chapter where Poe finds out everything about Breha's time at Tessler! I hope I still managed to keep the two of them in character! And I freaking love Breha-Chewie too haha. Hope you enjoyed this chapter!**

 **To splashofbi: I know I'm so sorry! As a reader I too hate cliff hangers but as an author they just happen haha. And Maya isn't well liked at the moment at all haha. But here is your Poe-Breha! I had a few potential first kiss scenes in mind some were earlier in the fic that never happened and some were potentially later… But I bit the bullet, went with my gut and wrote this one. I hope you guys feel like the scene was natural!**

 **To Ardoa88: Thank you! Relieved to hear that any signs of struggle in writing the chapter were absent in the actual chapter haha. I did a tiny little fist punch in the air went you mentioned I got Han in character so thank you. And here was the big Poe-Breha conversation. I'm really hoping that the scene flowed and felt natural to the plot. I know I'm out of practise writing romance scenes *sigh* but I welcome feedback on the chapter! And the Luke-Ben conversation will be rough and you've got it spot on with the darkside, it really isn't always about evil intent. In fact even looking back to the fall of Anakin Skywalker… all he wanted to do was protect his wife. Awww, thank you. I mean, you guys take the time to read and review my chapters the least I can do is reply to you all :) And I can't wait for your story to be released! And congratulations on graduating! X**

 **To the Guest from 17** **th** **May: No need to apologise I'm just glad that you've enjoyed the chapters! Breha is seriously troubled by her actions at Tessler and Poe got to see that in this chapter. And it's great to find another Kit lover :D I really do adore writing his character haha. I hope you enjoyed this chapter anyway!**

 **To LoveFiction2016: Thank you. And there you go :D**

 **To Great Admirer: No need to apologise! I'm just happy that you've taken the time to read and review! I was smiling so much reading your reviews. And you did call it haha. Luke and Ben are off having serious "forcey" conversations which never end well haha and Maya is just freaking out. Despite all that Poe and Breha have managed to actually talk to each other and I'm dying to know what you guys think for the Poe-breha developments. Very very pleased to hear that Acer has peaked your interest, there's more of him to come. As for owning her own lightsaber neither Ben nor Breha have their own lightsaber at the moment, in the fight scene she borrowed Jura's. And that is not a stupid question at all… in fact I've done more hours research into lightsaber colour for the planning of this fic than I care to admit haha. Currently I see Breha with two potential colours for her lightsaber (if she was to use one) the first, if she was to build a traditional lightsaber with an actual crytal I'd say she'd have a blue lightsaber. However, if Breha was to use a synthetic crystal (as used by the sith) instead of the crystal turning red as it does for all those anger filled sith lords it would end up being more of a yellow/orange colour… so there is a very long answer to a not stupid question :D**

 **To cerileneross: Thank you! And I'm glad that you liked Han's reaction. He's not a fatherly character to write to it was actually quite nice to be able to write that bit in. And he does hide his fatherly side deep down, the silly scruffy looking nerf hurder haha. I too love Ben-Breha, it pains me to think of what I'm going to have to write for Ben's character. And there is no needed to apologise, thank you for the review you have written! I hope work improves! Adult-ing is never fun haha. Hope you enjoyed this chapter.**

 **To Colleen: You're not exaggerating, as a reader I hate cliff hangers… and an author they just sort of happen. So apologise for leaving the story like I did, I hope this chapter makes up for it!**

 **To The Redshirt who Lived: The option is open for Finn & Maya to be related but I'm holding off until episode 8 to watch for any further character development/background history for Finn.**

 **To SilverAsTheFox: Sorry to keep you waiting! I roughly try to update Sunday evening/Monday morning. I hope you enjoyed this chapter and thank you for your review.**


	24. Chapter 24

**Chapter 24**

Analytic eyes regarded the unconscious red haired man in front of her with the cold calculative nature Maya had spoken of. He was slumped in a metal framed chair with his hands bound by energy cuffs to the metal table in front of him. His head lolled to one side exposing his neck and the dark coloured bruising that adorned his skin. Kit had signed off on Acer's discharge from medical and the vulture had been transported directly to the holding cells, which was where Breha had joined him and taken up her position opposite him. Her lips drew into a thin line as she picked up the blaster scope from the table in front of her and clicked it on. Silver tattoos immediately illuminated across Acer's chest and Breha narrowed her eyes as she read his bloody accomplishments like they were words on a page, committing every detail about him to memory.

Her time with Poe had been cut short, both had duties they needed to attend to. BB-8 had been chirping away about how it wasn't a coat stand when Poe's communicator had sounded from his belt – the General required his presence. Only moments later Breha's communicator had sounded – Kit announcing that Lara had awoken in medical. The pair had shared another chaste kiss before parting ways, BB-8 and Poe heading back in the direction of Leia whilst Breha made her way back to medical.

She arrived in medical, noting immediately that Acer no longer occupied his bay. Kit had been by her side the instant she entered the room and wasted no time in informing her that he'd transferred the vulture to the holding cells. It was a strange wash of pleasure he felt as he watched the concern fade from the young mechanics face.

"Where's Lara?" Had been her next question. Kit motioned with his hand to conscious woman.

"Breha!" Lara had called out to her boss the moment she saw her enter her bay. "I'm so sorry!" She gasped as she hurried to her feet and wrapped her arms around the younger woman. Breha blinked in surprise as she slowly wrapped her arms around the older woman.

"Lara, you have no reason to apologise." Breha said as she pulled away from the woman but kept her hands securely on the blonde's shoulders.

"But I called you up there." Lara protested, her eyes welling with tears. "I-I" She fumbled, Breha's brow furrowed with concern and she pulled the woman into a hug. "I'm so sorry." Lara murmured into the dark haired mechanics shoulder. Breha caught Kit's gaze over Lara's shaking shoulder and he gave her a knowing look before respectfully screening off the bay, giving the two women some privacy. Breha ran a soothing hand over Lara's back.

"It's okay Lara, everyone's okay." She assured the woman. Lara seemed to gather herself enough to pull away from Breha. "I need you to tell me everything that happened." Lara nodded and wiped at the tears on her cheeks with her sleeves. She inhaled deeply as she on the bed and Breha followed her example and took a seat in the chair by the side of the bed.

"He attacked us from behind before we even made it to the station." Lara began. "He took Jura hostage and threatened to kill her if I didn't comply with his demands. When Jura tried to fight back he injected her with some blue liquid and she just collapsed in his arms." Lara faltered, "I thought he was going to…" She trailed off. Breha's lips were a thin line as she grasped Lara's hand supportively. "He had me radio back to central command and request you. Breha he knew you by name." She looked at the younger woman with concern.

"I wish I could explain this to you Lara, but there are somethings that I cannot speak about." Breha sighed. Lara swallowed thickly.

"That's what he said you'd say." Lara replied. Breha stiffened in her seat. "He said you'd done terrible things Breha." She said quietly.

"Does he know who we are Lara?" Breha asked lowly. "Does he know we're the resistance?"

"I don't think so. And I didn't tell him." She replied, watching Breha carefully. "He asked about our weapons strength but not who we are." Lara hesitated. "Breha, what he said about you. Is it true?" She asked quietly.

"Thank you for telling me what happened Lara." Breha ignored her question as she stood from the chair. "I'm glad that you're okay." She added as she squeezed the older woman's hand.

"Breha." Lara called after her boss as she stepped out of the medical bay. Breha had only spared Kit a glance as she breezed out of medical as quickly as she had entered it causing the medic to stare at her retreating form with a deepening frown.

Once out in the corridors and on her way to the holding cells she'd pulled her communicator from her belt and raised it to her lips.

"Iivan, manage to get anything from our guest's ship?" She asked across the secure line.

"Plenty boss, you're going to want to see this." Iivan replied. Breha paused in her step and quickly made the decision to head to the storage unit opposed to the holding cells.

Breha entered the large hanger quickly passing by all of the non-Republic ships the resistance had on standby for covert missions. Iivan was at the very end, near the main hanger doors that lead out onto the tarmac.

"What have you found?" Breha asked as she joined the man next to the confiscated stealth ship.

"You mean apart from the fact this is some of the most sophisticated stealth technology I've ever seen?" Iivan began as he motioned to the dark, sleek ship. Breha cocked an eyebrow up. That was high praise indeed from a man like Iivan. The elder gentleman had joined the resistance from the Republic itself and as such had been exposed to the latest toys released by the Republics R&D departments. "I found this." Iivan bent down and picked up a fist sized data store. "It looked out of place compared to the other tech." He explained as he handed it to Breha. "I can't get into it though. I assume it's some sort of guidance processor."

"Shit." Breha cursed quietly as she recognised the device, a cold stab of dread hit her stomach and radiated outwards, slowly consuming all of her. Iivan paused in his ramblings and looked over Breha in concern.

"You know what it is?" He asked. Breha swallowed and nodded.

"It the nav-guide from my father's ship." Breha explained. The ship they had left behind at Tessler. She turned the device over in her hands and quickly made her way over to a terminal on the wall. Iivan followed her and watched with growing concern as she exposed a hidden port on the device and plugged it into the terminal.

"The nav-guide?" Iivan questioned. In normal ships, particularly freight ships that had a tendency to run the same routes, the nav-guides stored information on recent destinations with the aim to make navigation easier for the pilot. Since the resistance operated in secrecy they either disabled these devices, or if they were essential to the ship's safety protocols installed an auto-delete to the device. "Does it not have an auto-delete?"

"It has one." Breha shook her head as she tapped at the terminal. "I put it there myself when I was refitting the ship with Chewie." The furrow on her brow deepened as she rapidly scanned through the layers of code that appeared on the screen in front of her. "… How did you do it?" She mumbled and Iivan knew she wasn't speaking to him. She suddenly stopped scrolling and stepped back from the computer, the heels of her palms suddenly coming to rest on her temples and her wide eyes re-read over a particular fault in the code in front of her. A quiet curse slipped past her lips. "Oh, he's smart." Breha exhaled a mixture of awe and fury brewing deep in her stomach.

"He hacked the nav-guide, that's how he found us?" Iivan asked. Breha pulled her eyes from the terminal and looked to Iivan, nodding.

"Yeah. I didn't think it was possible." Breha admitted quietly, cursing her over confidence. "You need to report this is General Organa and Admiral Ackbar immediately, there are ships out there currently with that auto-delete written into them." Breha ordered as she collected herself. "We need to change the protocol, all ships need to run without nav-guides even if that involves re-writing the safely protocols for the ship."

"Right boss." Iivan nodded. Breha stepped away from him and went to make her leave. "Where are you off to?" he asked.

"Be rude to keep our guest waiting." She replied, eyes hard. "Unless there's anything else you want to show me?" She asked. Iivan shook his head and watched as the fierce young woman turned and strode out the way she had entered. From the storage unit she'd made her way straight to the holding cells and taken her seat across the table from Acer, patiently waiting for the mohawked man to wake up.

Acer groaned and immediately regretted doing so as a fresh wave of pain radiated from his tender throat. He slowly blinked his eyes opened, brow furrowing as the blurry image became clearer. He saw the energy cuffs first and gently tried pulling against them, lips turning downwards when he felt the strength in them. His gaze then rose from the table and settled on the woman sat opposite him. He drank in the way she sat seemingly comfortably back in the chair, one leg crossed over the other, hands resting in her lap, but he could see the tension threaded through her body. She was like a coiled spring ready to snap. His eyes narrowed and he coughed to clear his throat.

Breha's expression didn't lighten as she leant forward in her chair and picked up the cup of water on the table. Acer watched her curiously as she took a mouthful herself before offering it to him, he looked suspiciously at it.

"Figured I'd try a nice approach first." Breha explained her voice rolled over him like silk. Acer's mouth quirked at the corner as he easily caught the threat veiled by the silk of her voice. _I'll play nicely for now, but don't think I'm above beating what I want from you_. The cup of water warned him. He accepted her warning for now and welcomed the soothing coolness the water provided for his throat. His gaze never wavered from her as he continued to study her from over the rim of the cup she held for him.

"My throat appreciates that you did." He replied when she took the water away and placed it on the table between them. "So let me guess you want to know who I am, why I'm here or maybe more importantly how I found you?" Acer teased. Breha's eyes glinted with dangerous amusement as she watched him try to establish control of the interaction between the pair.

"No Acer, not particularly." She smirked causing Acer's confidence to waver. "You came for me that was obvious from the moment you forced one of our own to call me up to the station." Breha began. "And whilst you were drooling on the floor I took a little look at your ship, impressive vessel by the way, and stumbled across a very familiar nav-guide." All amusement fell from Acer's face.

"How long was I out?"

"Only a few hours. I work quickly." Breha grinned teasingly. Acer's teeth ground together as he glared at the woman opposite him, his hand itched to smack the smugness from her face.

"The hell do you want then?" he growled. Breha settled back in her chair and crossed her arms over her chest, tilting her head to the side curiously.

"I had time to have a little read whilst you were out too." She commented, choosing to ignore his question. Acer followed her gaze to the table and recognised the scope from one of his blasters. "You're well decorated." His gaze rose to meet hers once again. "Truly terrifying really." She added with a lightness to her voice. "Makes me wonder why someone so reportedly violent would drug two adversaries opposed to killing them?" Breha levelled him with a hard stare.

"They weren't my target." Acer growled lowly.

"If Veeta taught you anything, then you and I both know that target or not, if you're in the way then your fate's the same." Breha said causing Acer to stiffen in his seat, a reaction that didn't go unnoticed by Breha. "Why did you spare them?"

"They were hostages." Lie.

"The real reason." Breha growled dangerously.

"That is the-" He was cut off as Breha snapped from her seat like the coiled spring he'd likened her to and her hand clasped around his throat. She wasn't applying any dangerous amount of pressure but the contact was enough to shoot pain through the damaged skin.

"Like I warned you. I'll play nicely for as long as you tell the truth." Breha hissed lowly. Acer's eyes met hers and he caught a glimpse the Relik people feared so much.

"It felt wrong." Acer murmured quietly. Breha eyed the man for a moment before releasing her hold on him and resuming her seemingly calm position in the chair opposite him. "Killing them, it felt wrong."

"And the thought of killing me doesn't feel wrong?" Breha questioned.

"You've taken everything from me!" Acer bellowed in reply, his fists slamming down on the table. Breha's lip curled in sour amusement.

"For me to be able to _take_ something, implies that you actually _had_ something." Breha replied coldly. Acer exhaled angrily through his nose as he glared at the woman opposite him. Breha shook her head slightly and ran her tongue slowly over her bottom lip. "I used to be like you Acer. I swore myself to Veeta, just like you did, I answered his every call, his every whim. Even believed, like you, that I had status and possessions. But it was all Veeta, he provides you with a psudo-freedom to keep your loyalty at its strongest. Convinces you that it's all your choice. But I had nothing. You had _nothing_." Breha stood from her chair and stared down at the visibly shaken man opposite her. "Ending Veeta didn't take anything from you, Acer. The only difference between then and now is instead of having a false freedom under Veeta thumb, you are now actually a free man." And with that Breha turned and left the red haired man to reflect on her words.

Breha closed the door to Acer behind her and exhaled heavily, eyes closing as she worked to calm her heart rate. A door to her left opened and out stepped her parents and Poe. The three of them had been in the observation room to Acer's, a one way screen allowing them to see and hear her exchange with the vulture.

"You can be scary when you want to be, do you know that?" Han broke the silence. Breha blinked at him in surprise before a faint smile pulled at her lips and she shook her head in amusement.

"Yeah I think a girl was screaming it at me in medical earlier." She replied with dry humour.

"What do you make of him?" Leia asked before Han and Breha could sink deeper into a battle of wit. Breha turned to look at her mother and her face grew serious.

"I was telling the truth when I said I was just like him." Breha replied. "That is how I was under Veeta's control." She chewed her lip thoughtfully. "And yet here I am now." She left the suggestion unspoken.

"I think it would be wise to keep him here for a little while." Poe said, following on from Breha's unspoken suggestion. "See how he reacts." Leia frowned thoughtfully.

"I'll discuss it with Admiral Ackbar." She finally decided. "Along with the reprogramming of force knows how many ships." She added with a sigh.

"And perhaps also the development of the Resistance ground forces?" Breha suggested earning surprised looks from all three. "If it had been solely down to them to back me up against Acer, I'd have been dead by the time they got to me." She explained.

"Fantastic." Han rolled his eyes. Leia shared the sentiment silently but her gaze quickly softened and like the flick of a switch she went from General to mother. She reached forwards and took one of Breha's hands on her own.

"Get some rest Bree," She said softly. Breha nodded silently to her mother and squeezed her hand gently. She then looked up to her father who without saying a word managed to convey his agreement with Leia's suggestion. Leia let go of her daughters hand and walked past her, Han following after her. Breha followed them with her eyes for a moment before turning and looking up at Poe. The second their eyes met he welcomed her into his embrace, planting a kiss on the crown of her head.

"You're a pretty fierce interrogator." Poe commented. "Any other talents you want to tell me about?" He raised a brow. Breha leant away from his chest so she could look him in eye.

"What's the fun in me telling you?" She replied. "Those are for you to discover Commander Dameron." Poe bit his bottom lip in amusement as he gazed down at the woman in his grasp.

"Mission accepted."

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

 **Okay so this is just a small message to firstly reassure you all that I do plan on continuing this fanfic. That being said my exams are quite literally just around the corner so if I'm not updating weekly I apologise now. I have soooo much planned for this fic so please don't worry if I miss an update. Xx**

 **To RglStarwars: THEY DID! Haha I've been dying to write that for weeks now haha. Thank you so much for your review, I hope you enjoyed this chapter :D And yes! That is exactly what I was going for with Poe's reaction! I rewatched the Finn-Poe escape scene from TFA so many times to get inspiration for his reaction and to keep him in character. Also I am beyond flattered that you recommended my fic to a friend. Thank you X As for "protective daddy-han" that didn't go down so well with Breha the first time haha.**

 **To feelthatfire: Gah yay :D so happy to hear that I got the pacing of the romance right and that Breha's reveal of her past was believable. And for sure, Maya is going to be a tough one. Hope they chapter went some way to explaining Acer's motives.**

 **To Bluedog02: No don't be dead! Haha. And definitely cloud-city haha (that one made me grin). And yes Damerolo hit the fanfic big style! Thank you so much for your review I really can't express how much a reaction like that means to me, like seriously! To call an original character part of a OTP is INSANE! Like mind blowing insane :D To put this in league with the actually canon is one of the greatest compliments so thank you so much and I hope you enjoyed this chapter.**

 **To JunJunyil: Thank you for your review! And I've actually read Scavenged Renegade and for you to put my fic in the same class as theirs is a massive compliment thank you so much! As for plot twists I hope I can keep you guessing in future chapters! And have no fears Poe and Breha aren't going to go from 0 to 60 in the blink of an eye. I am firmly committed to making this a slow burn, believable romance :D I hope you enjoyed the chapter.**

 **To Cindy: Thank you for your review and YES! It's been a long journey to get there but they've finally kissed.**

 **To heroherondaletotherescue: Haha, I did keep that one secret for quite some time but the explanation is finally there! And I'm glad you liked Poe's reaction I mentioned above that I watched the Finn-Poe escape from TFA a few times to try and get his reaction in character. He was so ready to accept and trust Finn that I figured he wouldn't just forget the Breha he's grown close to. And no need to apologise! I hope you enjoyed this chapter.**

 **To Jules: Welcome to Namesake! I can't explain how incredible it is that you guys are sharing my fic with each other! Gah! Thank you so much for your review and I hope the fic doesn't disappoint!**

 **To Sky65: Gah! Thank you! Hope you enjoyed this one too**

 **To marflark: Yes! It is finally here! Big reveal of Breha's past and Poe-Breha finally kiss. Gah! So glad you appreciate the fact it all took place in her workshop, wasn't sure if many would pick up on the fact I had the scene set in there :D Also so pleased to hear that both Poe and Breha were in character throughout the romance scene. So so happy that you loved it! Hope you enjoyed this chapter as well.**

 **To the Guest from 24** **th** **May: yay! Thank you for your review! X**

 **To Lovefiction2016: Thank you for your review**

 **To JustDreamAboutIt: Oh my God review and reply to reviews would be hilarious with Gifs haha. Thank you so much for your review. I'm so pleased that you liked the chapter and I hope that you enjoyed this one!**

 **To the Guest from 26** **th** **May: Yay! Always love a fan who appreciates the slow-burn haha. But even slow burns reach boiling point eventually and voila the kiss :D And yes! Maya is going to be tough for sure!**

 **To Jaqi: yay! Thank you! It always feels incredible for someone to compliment an original character so much! And to them compliment my plot, writing style and depiction of canon characters, wow, seriously thank you! And yes! That is exactly what I was going for with Ben! I've put a load of work into his character development because I really want his turn to the darkside to be believable haha! I hope you liked this chapter.**

 **To Ardoa88: Yay! Welcome to fanfiction Ardoa88! And firstly so glad that my lack of practise didn't show through haha! And it's a massive relief to know that I kept both in character throughout the romantic interaction :D And Holy crap! Wanting George Lucas to read this and make another trilogy! … like that's rendered my speechless, actually speechless. Gah! Thank you. Best compliment ever! Now! None of this "much less fantastic" business I took a wander over to** _ **A Smuggler's Story**_ **and you go! That's one hell of a first chapter! Keep up the good work!**


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